l|P  PRINCETON.  N.  J. 


Library  of  Dr.  A.  A.  Eodge.  Presented. 


BX  8748    .B37  1885 
Barrett,   B.   F.  1808-1892 

Heaven  revealed 


Digitized  by  the  internet  Archive 
in  2014 


https://archive.org/details/heavenrevealedbeOObarr_0 


Heaven  Revealed. 


BEING 


A  POPULAR   PRESENTATION  OF  SWED EN- 
BO  RG'S  DISCLOSURES  ABOUT  HE  A  VEN, 


WITH  THE 


CONCURRENT  TESTIMONY  OF  A  FEW  COMPE- 
TENT AND  RELIABLE  WITNESSES. 


BY 

B.  F.  BARRETT, 

Author  of  "The  New  View  of  Hell,"  "The  New  Dispensation,"  "Foot- 
prints OF  THE  New  Age,"  "The  Question  Answered,"  etc.,  etc. 


"1/  the  phenomena  of  the  Spiritual  World  are  real,  in  the  nature  of  things  they  ought 
to  cotne  into  the  sphere  of  Law." — Henry  Dkummond. 


PHILADELPHIA: 
PORTER  &  COATES. 
1885. 


Copyright. 

SWEDENBORG  PUBLISHING  ASSOCIATION. 
1885. 


Preface. 


IT  is  nearly  fifty  years  since  the  author  of  the  present 
work  commenced  a  serious  and  thorough  examina- 
tion of  the  theological  writings  of  Emanuel  Sweden- 
borg.  He  was  told  that  this  illustrious  seer  claimed  to 
have  enjoyed  open  intercourse  with  the  denizens  of  the 
spiritual  world  for  many  years,  and  to  have  been  divinely 
commissioned  to  write  a  detailed  account  of  what  he 
heard  and  saw  in  that  world ;  and  the  treatise  known  as 
"  Heaven  and  ^ell  "  was  placed  in  his  hands  for  perusal. 
After  reading  a  few  pages,  the  book  was  laid  aside, 
the  present  writer  saying  to  himself :  "All  this  may  be 
true,  or  it  may  not.  We  have  no  means  of  knowing. 
There  is  no  adequate  test  whereby  the  truth  or  falsity 
of  such  alleged  disclosures  can  be  determined.  Why, 
then,  should  I  waste  time  over  such  a  book  ?  " 

It  is  easy  for  me,  therefore,  to  pardon  the  incredulity 
of  Christians  touching  this  astounding  claim  of  the 
great  seer,  and  to  excuse  the  prevailing  reluctance  to 
give  any  thought  or  attention  to  his  alleged  disclosures 
concerning  the  other  world.  For  probably  most  of 
them  think  as  I  did,  that  we  have  no  means  of  proving 

either  the  truth  or  falsity  of  such  pretended  revelations. 

iii 


iv 


PREFACE. 


What  is  to  be  gained,  therefore,  by  an  examination  of 
something  which  can  neither  be  proved  nor  ^//i-proved  ? 
Will  it  not  be  a  waste  of  time? 

But  when,  after  thorough  and  careful  study  of  Swe- 
denborg's  theological  system,  I  found  myself  compelled 
by  irresistible  force  of  evidence  to  accept  it  for  just  what 
it  claims  to  be — a  divinely  authorized  revelation  of  new 
and  heavenly  truth — I  was  satisfied  that  he  was  a  man 
ordained  and  sent  of  God,  and  that  his  disclosures  con- 
cerning Heaven  and  Hell  must  also  be  true.  Then 
turning  my  attention  to  his  pneumatology,  I  very  soon 
found  that  this,  too,  rests  on  a  foundation  not  less  solid 
and  secure  than  his  theology ;  and  that  its  truth  is  sus- 
ceptible of  proof  to  an  extent  I  had  not  suspected — 
susceptible  of  a  verification,  indeed,  closely  approximat- 
ing the  demonstrations  of  exact  science. 

The  purpose  of  the  present  volume  is,  to  lay  before 
the  reader  some  of  the  evidence  which  carried  con- 
viction to  the  writer's  own  mind,  that  what  Sweden- 
borg  has  revealed  concerning  the  heaven  of  angels  is 
no  mere  fancy  sketch,  but  literally  and  unquestiona- 
bly true.  A  number  of  reliable  and  independent  wit- 
nesses have  been  summoned  in  the  case, — such  as 
Scripture,  reason,  analogy,  human  experience,  the 
known  laws  of  our  mental  and  moral  constitution,  the 
hopes  and  perceptions  of  the  wisest  and  best  men,  the 
revealed  character  of  the  Heavenly  Father,  and  the 


PREFACE. 


V 


undeniably  wholesome  and  benign  tendency  of  the  dis- 
closures themselves. 

Now,  if  we  have  the  concurrent  testimony  of  all  these 
witnesses  in  support  of  the  truth  of  Swedenborg's  dis- 
closures, what  is  the  verdict  we  might  reasonably  expect 
on  the  subject,  from  an  intelligent  and  fair-minded  jury? 
Had  he  performed  miracles  like  those  recorded  in  the 
New  Testament,  and  had  his  miraculous  power  and 
deeds  been  ever  so  well  authenticated,  would  this  have 
been  half  as  convincing  to  a  rational  and  truth-seeking 
mind,  as  the  agreeing  testimony  of  the  above  named 
witnesses  ?  Or  would  it  have  been  half  as  well  suited 
to  the  requirements  of  a  reasoning  and  reflecting  age  ? 

Probably  every  Christian  minister  is  plied  with  ques- 
tions now"  and  then  concerning  the  life  beyond  the 
grave,  which  he  would  be  glad  to  answer,  but  feels  his 
utter  inability  to  do  so ;  and  most  ministers  would,  no 
doubt,  greatly  rejoice  to  have  a  full  and  strictly  accurate 
account  of  the  spiritual  world,  its  nature,  inhabitants, 
phenomena  and  laws — an  account  as  full  and  reliable  as 
an  honest  and  intelligent  traveler  who  had  spent  twenty 
years  or  more  in  Japan,  might  be  expected  to  give  us 
of  that  country.  They  would  doubtless  find  it  an  im- 
mense aid  in  their  work  of  helping  souls  on  the  way  to 
heaven. 

And  the  author  believes  that  every  minister  who  reads 
this  volume  with  close  attention  and  without  prejudice, 


vi 


rREFACE. 


will  be  satisfied  that  such  a  report  of  the  world  beyond 
Jias  actually  been  made.  And  he  has  himself  derived 
so  great  satisfaction  and  spiritual  help  from  the  disclos- 
ures to  which  he  here  invites  attention,  and  is  so  anx- 
ious that  others  should  share  what  has  been  to  him 
such  a  rich  repast,  that  he  feels  like  making  personally 
a  large  discount  from  the  price  of  the  present  volume, 
to  every  minister  and  theological  student  in  our  land, 
who  will  promise  to  read  it  with  close  attention  and  a 
sincere  desire  to  know  the  truth. 

On  several  of  the  subjects  treated  in  these  pages, 
the  author  is  fully  aware  that  most  of  the  churches  of 
to-day  have  outgrown  and  rejected  the  views  that  were 
entertained  a  hundred  years  ago  ;  such,  for  example,  as 
"Work  in  Heaven,"  "Sex  and  Marriage  in* Heaven," 
"Children  in  Heaven,"  "A  Heaven  for  the  non-Chris- 
tian World,"  etc.  And  the  fact  that  the  views  com- 
monly held  and  taught  on  these  subjects  to-day,  are  in 
substantial  agreement  with  those  revealed  through  Swe- 
denborg,  should  be  taken  as  presumptive  evidence  that 
his  disclosures  on  other  subjects  also  are  true. 

And  if  a  minister's  ecclesiastical  relations  to-day,  are 
in  no  wise  affected  by  his  open  rejection  of  the  old  dog- 
mas of  the  damnation  of  some  infants  and  of  all  the 
Heathen,  and  of  incessant  oral  prayer  and  psalm-sing- 
ing in  heaven,  or  by  his  acceptance  of  the  new  and 
more  rational  views  on  these  subjects,  there  is  no  rea- 


PREFACE. 


vii 


son  to  believe  that  they  would  be  seriously  affected  by 
his  embracing  and  teaching  the  entire  pneumatology  of 
Swedenborg,  so  far,  at  least,  as  this  can  be  shown  to 
be  in  agreement  with  Scripture,  reason,  experience,  and 
the  known  laws  of  the  human  soul. 

But  the  strongest  evidence  of  the  truth  of  Sweden- 
borg's  revealings  about  Heaven,  and  that  which,  above 
all  else,  should  commend  them  to  the  thoughtful  and 
earnest  inquirer,  is  their  wholesome  practical  tendency — 
their  unquestionably  elevating  and  benign  influence 
upon  the  believer's  life  and  character.  The  author 
hopes  that  the  reader  will  not  lose  sight  of  this  consid- 
eration, nor  forget  to  give  to  it  the  weight  which  its  im- 
portance demands  :  Remembering  these  divine  words  : 

"For  every  tree  is  knozu?i  by  his  own  fruit.  For  of 
thorns  men  do  not  gather  figs,  nor  of  a  bramble -bush 
gather  they  grapes'' 

And  no  more  should  we  expect  that  wholesome  and 
benign  influences  would  be  shed  forth  upon  the  believ- 
er's mind  and  heart,  from  false  or  fantastic  teachings, 
from  the  speculations  of  a  mere  theorist,  the  hallucina- 
tions of  a  dreamer,  or  the  oracular  utterances  of  an  in- 
nocent but  self-deluded  fanatic. 

B.  F.  B. 

Germantown,  June  24,  1885. 


Contents. 


PAGE 

I.— SWEDENBORG  THE  ChOSEN  INSTRUMENT        .         .         .  I3 

II.  — Objections  Answered  19 

III.  — The  Origin  of  Angels  34 

IV.  — The  Essential  Nature  of  Heaven  .  .  .  .54 
V. — Character  of  the  Angels  64 

VI. — Verdict  of  Reason  and  Experience       .      .  .72 

VII. — Testimony  of  Scripture  80 

VIII. — The  Sure  Way  to  Heaven  95 

IX.— Light  and  Heat  in  He.a.ven  110 

X. — Practical  Tendency  of  this  Disclosure  .  .  122 
XL— Environment  in  Heaven, and  WH.vr  Detek.mines  it  .  134 
Xll. — Societies  in  Heaven  148 

XIII.  — The  Hu.man  Form  of  He.wen  162 

XIV.  — A  Heaven  for  the  Non-Christian  World  .  .176 
XV. — Are  Earthly  Rel.\tionships  Continued  in  Hea\  en  ?  .  192 

XVI.— Meeting  and  Recognition    of  Friends  in  the 

Hereafter  200 

XVII. — Personal  Appearance  of  the  Angels  .  .  .  209 
XVIII. — Rejuvenescence  and  Growth  in  Heaven       .       .  221 

XIX. — Houses  and  Homes  in  Heaven  228 

XX. — Garments  in  Heaven  244 

XXL — Children  in  Heaven  256 

XXII. — Sex  and  Marri.\ge  in  Heaven  268 

XXIII.  — The  Subject  Continued— Scripture  Testimony    .  284 

XXIV.  — CoNjUGiAL  Love— Its  N.\ture  295 

XXV. — Practical  Consider.\tions  306 

XXVL— Work  in  Heaven  319 

XXVII. — The  Three  Heavens,  and  How  Related       .       .  346 

XXVIII. — Eternal  Progress  in  He.wen  364 

XXIX. — Consociation  of  Angels  with  Men  .      .       .  .377 

ix 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


xi 


ABBREVIATIONS 


OF  THE  WORKS  OF  SWEDENBORG  QUOTED  IN  THE  FOLLOWING 
PAGES. 


A.  C. 

stand  for  Arcana  Coclestia. 

11.  II. 

"        Heaven  and  Hell. 

A.  R. 

"        Apocalypse  Revealed. 

A.  E. 

"        Apocalypse  Explained. 

D.  P. 

"        Divine  Providence. 

C.  L. 

"        Conjugial  Love. 

L.  J. 

"        Last  Judgment. 

Spl.  D. 

"        Spiritual  Diary. 

D.  W. 

"        Divine  Wisdom. 

Doc.  L. 

"        Doctrine  of  Life. 

T.  C.  R. 

"        True  Christian  Religion. 

N.  J.  D. 

"        Doctrine  of  the  New  Jerusalem. 

D.  L.  W. 

"        Divine  Love  and  Wisdom. 

Heaven  Revealed. 


I. 

SWEDENBORG  THE  CHOSEN  INSTRUMENT. 

MANY  people  nowadays  know  something  of  the 
claims  of  Emanuel  Swedenborg,  however  deficient 
the  great  majority  may  still  be  in  any  correct  knowl- 
edge of  his  teachings.  It  is  generally  known  that  he 
claimed,  among  other  things,  to  have  had  his  spiritual 
senses  so  opened  as  to  enable  him  to  see  and  converse 
with  the  denizens  of  the  spiritual  world  as  men  see  and 
converse  with  each  other ;  and  this  continually  for  a 
period  of  nearly  thirty  years,  embracing  the  ripest  por- 
tion of  his  earthly  life.  He  made  no  secret  of  this 
claim,  extraordinary  and  startling  as  he  knew  it  to  be; 
but  boldly  announced  it  on  every  suitable  occasion,  and 
repeatedly  in  his  published  works.  In  the  commence- 
ment of  his  treatise  known  as  "  Heaven  and  Hell,"  oc- 
curs the  following  explicit  declaration: — 

"The  arcana  revealed  in  the  following  pages  are 
those  concerning  heaven,  together  with  the  life  of  man 
after  death.    The  man  of  the  church  at  this  day  knows 

2  13 


14 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


scarcely  anything  about  heaven  or  hell,  nor  yet  about 
his  own  life  after  death,  although  these  things  are  all 
treated  of  in  the  Word.  Nay,  many  even  among  those 
who  were  born  within  the  church  deny  these  things, 
saying  in  their  hearts.  Who  has  ever  come  thence  and 
told  us?  Lest,  therefore,  such  a  negative  principle, 
which  rules  especially  among  those  who  possess  much 
worldly  wisdom,  should  also  infect  and  corrupt  the  sim- 
ple in  heart  and  faith,  it  has  been  granted  me  to  asso- 
ciate with  angels  and  to  converse  with  them  as  one 
man  with  another,  and  also  to  see  the  things  which  are 
in  the  heavens  as  well  as  those  which  are  in  the  hells, 
and  this  for  the  space  of  thirteen  years ;  so  that  I  can 
now  describe  them  from  what  I  have  myself  seen  and 
heard, — which  I  do,  in  the  hope  that  ignorance  may 
thus  be  enlightened  and  incredulity  dissipated." 

The  same  claim  in  substance  is  often  repeated  in  his 
writings.  And  he  tells  us  how  this  extraordinary  privi- 
lege was  granted  him,  or  in  what  way  this  alleged  open 
intercourse  with  the  inhabitants  of  the  other  world  was 
effected.  It  was  through  the  providential  opening  of 
his  spiritual  senses.  These  senses,  he  says,  belong  alike 
to  every  human  being.  They  are  inherent  in  the  very 
constitution  of  an  immortal  spirit — are  included  among 
its  powers  or  capabilities,  just  as  natural  sight,  hearing, 
feeling,  etc.,  are  included  in  the  capabilities  of  our  ma- 
terial organism.  And  although  these  senses  (for  a  wise 
and  beneficent  purpose  which  he  has  repeatedly  ex- 
plained) are  ordinarily  closed  during  our  life  on  earth, 
they  nevertheless  may  be  and  repeatedly  have  been 
opened  in  men  while  living  in  the  flesh.  And  when 
opened,  the  individual  is  for  the  time  intromitted  into 


SWEDEXBORG    THE  CHOSEN  INSTRUMENT.      1 5 


the  spiritual  world,  and  enjoys  a  sensible  perception  of 
its  people  and  objects.* 

We  know  very  well  how  this  claim  is  commonly  re- 
garded by  those  who  have  never  examined  the  seer's 
disclosures  with  sufficient  thoroughness  to  enable  them 
to  form  an  intelligent  opinion  of  his  pneumatology. 
They  look  upon  his  alleged  open  intercourse  with  spir- 
its, as  not  only  improbable,  unreasonable  and  unsus- 
ceptible of  proof,  but  as  evidencing  a  want  of  mental 
balance — as,  indeed,  a  species  of  monomania.  Many 
who  do  not  believe  him  a  willful  impostor,  and  who  are 
ready  to  admit  (for  popular  opinion  is  beginning  to  lean 
this  way)  that  he  saw  truth  on  many  subjects  quite  in 
advance  of  his  age,  treat  with  contempt  and  derision  his 
claim  to  open  intercourse  with  angels  and  spirits  ;  as  if 
such  visions  as  he  has  recorded  were  to  be  reckoned 
among  things  highly  improbable  if  not  impossible,  and 
the  record  itself  to  be  accepted  as  evidence  of  mental 
derangement. 

This  is  the  attitude  of  nearly  every  one  in  reference 
to  the  great  Swede's  alleged  intercourse  with  the  deni- 
zens of  the  other  world,  before  he  has  given  much 
thought  to  the  subject,  or  has  examined  the  evidence 
by  which  his  claim  is  supported.  It  was  substantially 
the  writer's  own  attitude  before  he  had  made  himself 
familiar  with  the  general  character  of  the  seer's  disclos- 

*  The  Bible  furnishes  evidence  of  the  existence  of  spiritual  senses  in 
man,  and  of  their  having  been  occasionally  opened  during  his  earthly 
sojourn.  See  2  Kings  vi.  15-18;  and  other  texts  cited  in  the  chapter  on 
"  The  Rationale  of  Spirit-seeing  "  in  Doctrines  of  the  Nnu  Church  by  the 
author,  pp.  208-213. 


i6 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


urcs,  and  had  duly  considered  the  facts  and  laws  which 
underlie  his  pncumatology,  and  prove  it  not  only  credi- 
ble but  indisputably  true. 

But  Swedcnborg's  claim  to  a  special  illumination  and 
open  vision  (if  allowed),  we  shall  be  told,  stamps  his 
disclosures  with  the  character  of  a  divinely  authorized 
revelation.  And  not  only  do  people  nowadays  find  it 
hard  to  believe  in  any  new  revelation  (multitudes  are 
coming  to  disbelieve  in  any  revelation,  unless  its  truth 
can  be  scientifically  demonstrated),  but  the  claim  itself 
seems  to  them  ridiculous,  and  quite  sufficient  to  dis- 
credit him  who  makes  it;  sufficient,  indeed,  to  prove 
him  a  deluded  fanatic  or  a  wicked  impostor.  Nor  are 
we  surprised  at  this,  seeing  how  many  "  false  Christs 
and  false  prophets  " — how  many  pretenders  to  a  special 
divine  commission — have  from  time  to  time  appeared, 
and  how  many  have  been  deceived  by  them.  But  peo- 
ple do  not  reason  thus  on  other  subjects.  On  the  con- 
trary, they  admit  that  a  counterfeit  is  conclusive  evidence 
that  there  is  such  a  thing  as  genuine  coin. 

It  is  quite  true  that  Swedenborg's  disclosures  come  to 
us  professedly  as  a  new  and  divinely  authorized  revela- 
tion ;  a  revelation,  however,  not  contrary  nor  supple- 
mentary to  the  Sacred  Scripture,  yet  necessary  to  its 
complete  fulfillment  and  to  the  better  understanding 
and  fuller  efficacy  of  its  teachings;  a  revelation  meant 
and  fitted  for  the  spiritual  edification  of  all  who  are 
longing  for  instruction  on  the  sublimest  themes,  and  are 
willing  to  receive  it.  But  these  disclosures,  notwith- 
standing they  come  professedly  as  an  authorized  reve- 
lation, claim  no  authority  and  ask  no  consideration 


SVVEDENBORG    THE   CHOSEN  INSTRUMENT.  1/ 


merely  on  that  ground.  They  ask  to  be  received  solely 
upon  the  ground  of  their  intrinsic  reasonableness,  or 
their  clearly  perceived  agreement  with  the  deepest  in- 
tuitions of  human  reason  and  the  verdict  of  the  most 
enlightened  understanding.  They  appeal  to  no  miracu- 
lous evidence  in  attestation  of  their  truth,  but  to  evi- 
dence of  a  higher  kind.  Scripture,  reason,  analogy,  ob- 
servation, history,  individual  experience,  well-authenti- 
cated facts,  the  principles  of  sound  philosophy,  the 
known  laws  of  our  mental  and  moral  constitution,  the 
wisdom  and  beneficence  of  God  as  revealed  in  his  Word 
and  works  and  in  the  wondrous  ways  of  his  Providence 
— these  are  the  witnesses  which  are  confidently  ap- 
pealed to.  What  if  these  should  all  unite  in  affirming 
the  validity  of  this  man's  claim  and  the  truth  of  his  dis- 
closures? Shall  we  reject  or  disregard  the  concurrent 
testimony  of  such  witnesses  ? 

Already  there  is  a  large  and  continually  increasing 
class  of  minds — among  them  are  persons  by  no  means 
deficient  in  intellectual  grasp,  logical  acumen  or  judicial 
candor — who,  after  years  of  careful  examination  of  the 
disclosures  in  question,  have  been  constrained  to  ac- 
knowledge their  truth ;  and  this,  too,  in  spite  of  the  in- 
fluence of  early  education,  preconceived  opinions,  popu- 
lar prejudice,  the  sneers  of  the  multitude,  and  the  pity 
if  not  the  frowns  of  near  and  valued  friends.  When  all 
this  is  duly  considered,  we  submit  to  the  honest  and  in- 
dependent seekers  after  truth,  whether  it  does  not  enti- 
tle this  new  revelation  to,  at  least,  a  candid  examination. 
Certainly  the  acceptance  of  any  revelation  or  theory 
by  wise  and  good  men,  is  not  sufficient  evidence  of 

2*  B 


i8 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


its  truth ;  for  wise  and  good  men  have  sometimes 
embraced  error, — yes,  and  clung  to  it  with  surprising 
tenacity.  But  the  profound  conviction  of  many  such 
men,  is,  we  think,  a  sufficient  reason  for  giving  their 
views  a  candid  examination  before  pronouncing  them 
erroneous.  Our  judgment  is  unintelligent,  and  there- 
fore valueless,  until  we  have  carefully  weighed  the  evi- 
dence which  carried  conviction  to  their  minds.  The 
Jews,  when  they  crucified  the  Divine  Saviour,  knew  not 
what  they  did.  And  Christians  at  the  present  day  know 
as  little  what  they  do,  when,  without  serious  examina- 
tion, or  any  weighing  of  the  evidence,  they  reject  and 
ridicule  the  disclosures  made  through  the  Swedish  seer. 
May  they  not  in  this  be  imitating  the  example  of  the 
Jews  more  closely  than  they  imagine  ? 

But  the  very  claim,  we  are  told,  which  Swedenborg 
sets  up — the  claim  to  have  enjoyed  long  and  open  in- 
tercourse with  the  spirits  of  deceased  men,  and  to  have 
been  thereby  enabled  to  reveal  the  arcana  of  the  spirit- 
ual world,  is  of  itself  sufficient  to  stamp  him  as  a  de- 
luded fanatic.  It  is  assumed  that  such  intercourse  is 
impossible  in  the  nature  of  things ;  and  on  the  ground 
of  this  assumption.  Christians  proceed  to  justify  them- 
selves in  their  neglect  to  examine  his  disclosures.  But 
if  this  be  a  sufficient  justification,  or  if  Swedenborg's 
claim  alone  be  evidence  of  self-delusion,  then  what  is  to 
be  said  of  Isaiah  and  Ezekiel  and  Paul  and  John  and  a 
host  of  ancient  worthies?  If  the  mere  fact  of  his  claim- 
ing open  intercourse  with  spirits,  is  sufficient  proof  of 
mental  aberration  in  his  case,  then  why  should  not  a 
similar  claim  be  accepted  as  evidence  of  a  similar  men- 


OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 


19 


tal  condition  in  the  case  of  all  other  seers  ?  Or  will  it 
be  said  that  what  was  once  reckoned  among  the  creden- 
tials of  heaven-illumined  prophets,  is  now  to  be  re- 
garded as  evidence  of  mental  hallucination  ? 


II. 

OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 

IT  is  quite  common  to  hear  urged  against  Sweden- 
borg's  claim,  such  objections  as  these :  That,  after 
the  closing  of  the  sacred  canon,  there  was  never  to  be 
any  further  revelation ;  that  his  disclosures  concerning 
the  other  world,  if  true,  would  be  a  revelation  of  mys- 
teries which  no  one  has  a  right  to  pry  into  or  know 
anything  about;  that  it  would  be  an  unveiling  of  the 
"  secret  things  "  which  belong  to  God,  and  are  no  con- 
cern of  ours. 

But  what  reason  have  we  to  believe  that  God  has 
limited  Himself  to  precisely  that  measure  of  revealed 
truth  vouchsafed  to  the  world  many  centuries  ago  ? 
Where  is  it  written  that  He  will  never  make  any  fur- 
ther revelation  concerning  Himself,  his  kingdom,  or  the 
grand  realities  of  the  spiritual  world  ?  The  Bible  con- 
tains no  such  declaration — no  warrant,  indeed,  for  any 
such  belief  What  reason,  then,  for  believing  that  the 
Heavenly  Father  has  denied  to  Himself  the  delight  of 
communicating,  or  to  men  the  blessed  privilege  of  re- 
ceiving, more  truth  concerning  that  world  beyond  the 
tomb  which  is  to  be  the  final  home  of  all  his  children  ? 


20 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


What  reason  for  the  belief  that  everything  was  revealed 
centuries  ago,  which  ever  was  or  ever  is  to  be  revealed  ? 
And  if  it  should  please  God  to  lift  the  veil,  and  make  a 
disclosure  of  things  once  secret,  is  it  presumptuous  for 
mortals  to  look  upon  them  ?  However  unlawful  it  may- 
be to  pry  into  the  mysteries  of  the  spirit-world,  it  surely 
cannot  be  wrong  to  receive  with  thankfulness  such  dis- 
closures as  Infinite  Wisdom  has  been  pleased  to  make. 
True,  it  is  written  that  "  secret  things  belong  unto  the 
Lord  our  God;"  but  it  is  immediately  added:  that 
"  those  things  which  are  revealed,  belong  unto  us  and 
to  our  children  forever."    (Deut.  xxix.  29 ) 

And  if  there  be  a  spiritual  world  (and  the  Scriptures 
plainly  teach  that  there  is),  is  it  not  reasonable  to  be- 
lieve that  more  will  ultimately  be  known  about  it,  than 
was  communicated  to  Christians  1800  years  ago  ?  Have 
we  not  reason  to  expect  that  the  time  will  come  when 
the  mysteries  of  that  world  will  be  unveiled  and  its  sub- 
lime realities  disclosed — at  least  to  man's  mental  or 
moral  vision?  Christ  told  his  immediate  followers  that 
He  had  many  things  to  say  unto  them,  which  they  were 
not  able  to  bear  (John  xvi.  12) ;  but  He  never  intimated 
that  the  same  inability  would  belong  to  his  disciples 
throughout  the  coming  ages.  On  the  contrary,  He  more 
than  hinted,  and  on  more  than  one  occasion,  that  more 
truth  might  some  day  be  expected  than  it  was  expedi- 
ent at  that  time  to  impart.  He  told  them  that  the  time 
was  coming  when  He  would  no  longer  speak  in  para- 
bles, but  would  show  them  plainly  of  the  Father.  He 
told  them  of  a  Comforter  which  He  would  send  unto 
them,  "  even  the  spirit  of  truth  ;  "  and  this  Comforter,  He 


OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 


21 


said,  when  He  came,  would  teach  them  all  things,  would 
show  them  things  to  come,  would  guide  them  into  all 
truth.    (John  xvi.  7-13.) 

He  spoke  also  of  another  coming  of  Himself,  more 
searching,  more  glorious,  more  powerful  in  its  operation 
upon  the  minds  and  hearts  of  men  than  his  first  appear- 
ing— a  coming  which  He  said  would  be  "  with  power 
and  great  glory." 

Now,  who  can  say,  in  limine,  that,  in  these  prophetic 
intimations,  no  reference  was  had  to  that  grand  system 
of  religious  truth  which  was  unfolded,  or  came  profess- 
edly as  a  new  revelation,  more  than  a  century  ago  ? 
Who  can  say  that  the  increasing  light  upon  all  subjects 
which  has  been  flooding  the  world  for  the  last  hundred 
years,  is  not  a  veritable  fulfillment  of  these  prophecies, 
and  in  the  sense  intended  ?  Who  knows  but  the  many  in- 
teresting disclosures  made  through  Swedenborg  con- 
cerning the  spiritual  world,  may  be  among  the  things 
which  the  Saviour  had  to  announce,  but  which  the  men 
of  1850  years  ago  were  "  not  able  to  bear  "  ?  Christ  de- 
clared Himself  to  be  "  the  Way,"  "  the  Truth,"  "  the 
Life,"  "  the  Light  of  the  world,"  "  the  Light  which  en- 
lighteneth  every  man."  And  the  apostle  John  says : 
"God  is  light,  and  in  Him  is  no  darkness  at  all."  May 
not  the  predicted  second  coming  of  Christ,  then,  be  the 
coming  to  human  minds  of  more  abundant  light  from 
Him  who  is  declared  to  be  "  the  true  Light  "  ? — of  light 
more  interior,  searching  and  glorious  than  has  hitherto 
dawned  on  our  world  ? — the  light  of  the  spiritual  sense 
of  the  Word  breaking  forth  through  the  cloud  of  the 
letter, — coupled  also  with  the  coming  to  human  hearts 


22 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


of  a  sweeter  and  more  Christ-like  spirit?  And  may  not 
this  light  reveal,  among  other  things,  the  nature,  laws 
and  phenomena  of  that  world  which  is  to  be  our  eternal 
dwelling-place  ?  Who  knows,  we  say,  but  spiritual  light 
— the  light  of  the  New  Jerusalem  which  is  beginning 
even  now  to  gild  and  gladden  with  its  splendors  the 
world's  moral  horizon — light  manifesting  itself  amid 
clouds  of  still  existing  error,  the  mists  of  ignorance,  su- 
perstition and  prejudice,  the  smoke  of  demoniacal  pas- 
sions and  enmities — may  be  precisely  what  the  Saviour 
referred  to  when  He  spoke  of  a  second  coming  of  the 
Son  of  Man  "  in  the  clouds  of  heaven,  with  power  and 
great  glory  "  ?  Who  knows  ?  And  the  way  to  acquire 
such  knowledge  is  not,  we  submit,  to  treat  with  indiffer- 
ence or  neglect  everything  that  claims  to  be  a  new 
revelation,  but  to  "  watch  " — not  with  the  eyes  of  the 
body,  but  with  the  eyes  of  the  mind,  that  is,  with  our  in- 
tellectual and  reasoning  faculties. 

We  shall  find,  on  careful  reading  and  a  thoughtful 
consideration  of  the  whole  subject,  that  the  language  of 
the  New  Testament  clearly  requires,  for  its  complete 
fulfillment,  some  such  revelation  as  that  claimed  to  have 
been  made  through  the  seer  of  Stockholm.  The  past 
history  and  present  state  of  the  Christian  church  also, 
and  the  acknowledged  ignorance  of  teachers  of  the 
Christian  religion  concerning  the  spiritual  world,  justify 
the  same  expectation. 

The  Bible,  it  is  generally  conceded,  teaches  the  im- 
mortality of  the  soul — the  immortality  of  man.  The 
fair  and  logical  conclusions  from  which  are,  that  the 
soul,  when  the  body  dies,  still  continues  to  live  in  its 


OBJECTIOiVS  ANSWERED. 


23 


own  congenial  realm  which  is  spiritual,  that  is,  homo- 
geneous with  itself;  that  this,  therefore,  necessitates  the 
existence  of  a  supersensuous  or  spiritual  world  vastly- 
more  populous  than  that  in  which  we  are  now  living, — 
a  world  into  which  tens  of  thousands  of  human  beings 
are  consciously  introduced  every  hour ;  not  a  mere 
dream-land,  or  a  region  of  unsubstantial  shadows,  but  a 
real  world  inhabited  by  a  countless  host  of  rational  and 
immortal  spirits  who  were  once  invested  with  material 
bodies  like  our  own.  And  this,  too,  is  generally  conceded. 

But  ask  the  ministers  of  Christ  to-day — the  ministers 
of  that  religion  which  is  claimed  to  have  brought  "  life 
and  immortality  to  light" — about  the  spiritual  world. 
Ask  them  in  what  condition  we  may  expect  to  find  our- 
selves when  we  shall  have  "  shuffled  off  this  mortal 
coil."  Ask  them  if  we  shall  still  be  in  the  human  form, 
having  eyes,  ears,  hands,  feet,  and  other  bodily  organs; 
— if  we  shall  retain  the  power  of  thinking,  reasoning, 
remembering,  loving,  conversing  and  enjoying.  Ask 
them  if  our  departed  friends  still  think  of  us  and  love  us 
on  "  the  shining  shore ;"  if  they  are  near  us,  interested 
in  our  welfare,  and  capable  of  exerting  any  influence 
upon  us, — and  if  so,  how,  or  according  to  what  law. 
Ask  whether,  when  we  leave  these  mortal  bodies,  we 
shall  join  them  in  conscious  visible  association — be  re- 
cognized and  embraced  by  them,  and  recognize  and 
embrace  them  in  return.  Ask  whether  the  distinction 
of  sex  is  preserved  in  the  great  Beyond,  what  kind  of 
social  life  (if  any)  exists  there,  and  what  the  law  that 
governs  in  the  association  of  spirits.  Ask  whether 
those  who  die  in  infancy  and  childhood  retain  forever 


24 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


their  infantile  form,  or  whether  they  grow  to  the  full 
stature  of  men  and  women  as  in  this  world.  Ask 
whether  the  righteous  who  die  of  old  age,  continue 
wrinkled,  bowed  and  decrepid  there  as  here,  or  whether 
they  return  to  the  bloom  and  vigor  of  their  early  man- 
hood. Ask  what  is  the  nature  of  heaven  and  hell ; 
what  are  the  delights  of  good  and  what  those  of  evil 
spirits  (if  the  latter  have  any) ;  what  constitutes  the 
happiness  of  the  former,  and  what  the  misery  of  the  lat- 
ter. Ask  if  there  be  any  industries  or  occupations  be- 
yond the  grave,  and  what  their  nature  ;  and  whether 
there  exists  any  sort  of  connection  (and  if  so,  what  ?) 
between  spirits  in  the  other  world  and  men  in  this 
world.  Ask  ministers  of  the  Gospel  these  and  a  hun- 
dred other  similar  questions  (and  they  are  questions 
which  the  human  heart  instinctively  asks, — nay,  cannot 
help  asking),  and  what  will  they  answer?  Perhaps  they 
will  give  you  their  opinions — their  conjectures  ;  and  these 
may  sometimes  be  quite  sensible.  But  generally  you 
will  receive,  in  answer  to  all  such  inquiries,  a  frank  con- 
fession of  entire  ignorance.  They  will  tell  you  that  they 
do  not  pretend  to  know  anything  about  such  matters,  as 
nothing  has  ever  been  revealed ;  and,  therefore,  they 
cannot  undertake  to  teach  with  confidence  anything 
concerning  them. 

And  is  it  reasonable  to  suppose  that  this  state  of  con- 
fessed ignorance  about  things  of  such  absorbing  interest 
to  rational  and  immortal  beings,  will  always  continue  ? 
Can  we  believe  that  the  ministers  of  Christ  are  never  to 
have  anything  but  crude  conjecture  wherewith  to  an- 
swer inquiries  upon  such  lofty  and  momentous  themes? 


OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 


25 


If  there  be  a  spiritual  world,  according  to  the  universal 
belief  of  Christians,  is  it  reasonable  to  conclude  that  its 
arcana  will  never  be  revealed  ?  Does  such  conclusion 
agree  with  what  we  believe  and  know  of  the  goodness 
and  mercy  of  God,  the  wants  of  the  human  soul,  or  the 
progress  of  our  race  in  knowledge  upon  all  other  sub- 
jects ?  The  human  mind  has,  for  the  last  hundred 
years,  made  prodigious  advances  in  knowledge  of  the 
material  world,  and  in  the  means  of  satisfying  the  wants 
and  increasing  the  comforts  of  our  physical  life.  The 
secrets  of  universal  nature  have  been  steadily  disclosing 
themselves,  as  men  needed  the  knowledge  thereof,  and 
were  prepared  to  use  it  wisely.  And  new  and  useful 
discoveries  still  succeed  each  other  almost  with  the  ra- 
pidity of  thought.  Nor  can  we  fix  any  limit  to  this  prog- 
ress in  knowledge  of  the  material  universe.  TJiere  is  no 
limit.  To  fix  one,  were  to  limit  the  Infinite  Himself,  or 
to  deny  the  indefinite  enlargement  and  receptivity  of  the 
human  mind. 

Now,  seeing  that  God  is  perpetually  disclosing  the 
secrets  of  this  natural  world  for  the  benefit  of  his  ra- 
tional creatures,  and  since  the  liveliest  imagination  can 
set  no  bounds  to  the  increase  of  knowledge  in  this  di- 
rection, is  it  reasonable  to  suppose  that  all  knowledge 
of  the  spiritual  world  will  be  forever  denied  us  ?  Will 
the  Heavenly  Father  vouchsafe  to  his  children  an  un- 
imaginable amount  of  truth  concerning  this  world  of 
matter,  and  keep  that  sublimer  world  of  spirit  which  is 
to  be  our  eternal  home,  forever  shrouded  in  darkness  ? 
Will  He  never  reveal  to  us  anything  concerning  the  life 
3 


26 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


beyond  the  grave,  save  the  simple  fact  of  the  soul's  im- 
mortality ? 

WITether  we  consult  reason  or  revelation,  therefore, 
we  are  brought  to  the  same  conclusion.  We  find  ample 
warrant  for  the  belief  that  some  such  disclosures  con- 
cerning the  other  world  as  are  found  in  Swedenborg's 
pneumatology,  are  clearly  in  accordance  with  the  ways 
and  workings  of  Divine  Providence,  and  therefore  to 
be  expected  sooner  or  later.  And  how  could  such  dis- 
closures be  made  without  the  aid  of  a  human  instru- 
ment ?  How,  but  by  the  opening  of  the  spiritual  senses 
of  some  chosen  and  duly  qualified  servant  of  the  Lord, 
and  his  consequent  intromission  into  that  world  while 
still  an  inhabitant  of  this?  How,  in  short,  but  in  the 
precise  manner  alleged  by  the  illustrious  Swede.? 

But  we  are  met  with  another  objection — or  rather  ex- 
cuse for  giving  no  serious  attention  to  Swedenborg's 
pneumatology — which  is  :  That  a  revelation  concerning 
the  spiritual  world,  even  if  true,  could  serve  no  valuable 
purpose ;  that  it  is  needless,  and  might  be  worse  than 
useless ;  that  it  could  only  gratify  a  morbid  curiosity  or 
a  love  of  the  marvelous,  which  had  better  be  denied 
than  gratified. 

Those  who  make  this  objection,  or  offer  this  excuse 
in  justification  of  their  indifference  respecting  the  dis- 
closures in  question,  do  so,  we  think,  without  sufficient 
consideration.  The  same  persons  would  hardly  be  will- 
ing to  say,  that  the  astronomer,  the  .student  of  the 
higher  mathematics,  the  inventor  or  builder  of  tele- 
scopes, any  one  devoted  to  the  acquisition  and  imparta- 
tion  of  knowledge  respecting  our  solar  system  and  the 


OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 


27 


Stellar  universe,  is  engaged  in  a  useless  occupation.  On 
the  contrary,  they  would  tell  us  that  any  pursuit  which 
tends  to  enlarge  our  knowledge  of  the  material  cosmos, 
to  make  us  better  acquainted  with  the  heavenly  bodies 
and  the  laws  that  govern  their  movements,  is  a  high 
and  noble  use,  even  though  it  add  nothing  to  our  im- 
mediate physical  comfort.  Useless,  indeed,  so  far  as  re- 
lates to  supplying  our  bodily  wants,  may  be  the  business 
of  those  engaged  in  astronomical  observations.  But  are 
they  not  ministering  to  some  deeper  wants  of  our  nature 
— wants  not  less  real  and  imperative  than  those  of  the 
body  ?  Have  not  the  labors  of  the  astronomer  helped 
to  enlarge  our  knowledge  of  the  universe,  and  thus 
contributed  to  the  growth  and  expansion  of  the  mind, 
and  the  consequent  intellectual  and  moral  progress  of 
our  race  ? 

But  the  grandeur  of  the  material  universe  as  disclosed 
to  us  by  modern  science,  is  nothing  in  comparison  with 
the  grandeur  of  that  other  universe — the  universe  of 
mind.  Planets  and  suns  with  all  their  beautiful  laws 
and  phenomena,  and  all  their  quiet,  orderly,  rhythmic 
movements,  are  indeed  wonderful  ;  but  the  human  soul 
with  all  its  endowments — its  amazing  powers  of  thought 
and  affection,  its  faculty  of  boundless  growth  in  knowl- 
edge and  virtue,  its  untold  and  inconceivable  capabilities 
of  bliss  and  of  suffering — this  is  far  more  wonderful. 
By  the  side  of  this,  how  feeble  and  almost  insignificant 
the  glory  and  grandeur  of  all  material  orbs !  How 
much  more  is  this  like  God  himself,  than  planets  or  suns 
or  aught  else  in  the  created  universe !  And  shall  we 
conclude  that  a  knowledge  of  the  universe  of  souls — of 


28 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


its  facts,  phenomena  and  laws — can  be  of  no  value? 
That  this  is  knowledge  not  worth  revealing,  or  not 
worth  examining  when  revealed?  Shall  knowledge  of 
the  material  universe  be  considered  wholesome  and  use- 
ful— enlarging,  enriching  and  exalting  the  human  soul 
— and  knowledge  of  the  spiritual  universe,  so  much 
higher  and  nobler,  be  pronounced  worthless  ?  Is  it 
probable  that  the  former  of  these  knowledges  can  reveal 
to  us  more  of  God,  can  more  exalt  our  conceptions  of 
his  wisdom  and  love,  or  tend  to  bring  us  nearer  to  his 
moral  likeness,  than  the  latter?  Can  the  study  of  natu- 
ral astronomy  enlarge  and  ennoble  the  pursuer,  and  the 
learning  of  that  higher  kind  of  astronomy  which  em- 
braces the  relations,  laws  and  phenomena  of  the  spir- 
itual spheres,  be  useless  ?  Is  this  reasonable,  or  even 
probable  ? 

Again  :  Let  the  reader  imagine  himself  a  young  man, 
intending  to  emigrate  to  some  foreign  country  in  the 
course  of  a  few  years,  and  to  reside  there  during  the  re- 
mainder of  his  life.  Would  he  not  naturally  desire  some 
information  about  that  country,  and  about  the  character, 
conduct  and  condition  of  its  people?  Would  he  not 
wish  to  know  something  of  their  manners  and  customs, 
their  language  and  laws,  their  dispositions  and  habits, 
their  occupations  and  modes  of  life?  And  might  not 
such  knowledge  be  very  useful  by  enabling  him  the  bet- 
ter to  prepare  himself  for  the  honorable  discharge  of  his 
duties  as  a  citizen  of  that  country  ?  And  suppose  the 
country  to  have  been  previously  visited  by  some  distin- 
guished traveler  who  had  published  a  full  account  of  his 
travels,  of  the  country  itself  and  the  people  living  there; 


OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 


29 


would  the  time  employed  in  reading  his  book  be  con- 
sidered unprofitably  spent?  Would  anybody  think,  or 
would  the  young  man  himself  think,  that,  in  reading  it, 
he  was  merely  gratifying  an  idle  curiosity  ? 

Well,  then,  we  ask  if  the  desire  for  some  information 
about  that  country  whither  we  are  all  going — going,  we 
know  not  how  soon,  and  going  to  remain  forever — be 
not  equally  natural,  yes,  and  equally  lawful?  And  can 
we  conceive  of  no  higher  use  for  such  information,  than 
merely  to  gratify  a  morbid  curiosity?  Who  knows  but. 
it  may  be  turned  to  good  account  in  enabling  us  to  fit 
ourselves  more  thoroughly  for  the  duties  and  enjoy- 
ments of  our  future  home  ?  Who  knows  but  a  graphic 
picture  of  both  the  upper  and  the  nether  realms  in  the 
spirit-land — of  life  in  heaven  and  life  in  hell — may  kin- 
dle in  our  hearts  a  deeper  desire  for  the  former  and  a 
more  intense  loathing  of  the  latter?  Who  knows  but 
it  may  quicken  our  diligence  and  nerve  our  energies  to- 
ward the  attainment  of  the  one  and  the  avoidance  of  the 
other?  It  has  generally  been  believed  by  Christians 
that  there  exists  some  sort  of  connection  between  the 
present  life  and  the  life  to  come.  And  who  dares  say 
that  the  knowledge  of  how  our  life  hereafter  is  related 
to  our  life  here,  can  be  of  no  practical  importance  ? 

A  wise  parent  in  the  education  of  his  children,  usu- 
ally has  some  reference  to  the  part  they  are  expected  to 
act  when  they  shall  have  come  to  years  of  maturity. 
And  it  will  not  be  denied  that  his  knowledge  of  their 
future  duties  as  husbands,  fathers,  wives,  mothers — as 
members  of  society  and  citizens  of  the  state — enables 
him  to  direct  their  education  more  wisely  and  profitably 
3* 


30 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


than  he  otherwise  could.  Why,  then,  should  not  we  be 
able  to  give  a  wiser  direction  to  our  own  education  in 
this  the  childhood  of  our  being,  by  a  knowledge  of  the 
world  into  which  we  are  sure  of  being  ushered  in  our 
more  mature  manhood  ? — a  knowledge  of  the  laws, 
duties,  occupations  and  enjoyments  of  the  spiritual 
realm  ? 

No  need  of  a  revelation  concerning  the  other  world! 
Look  at  the  state  of  the  Christian  church  at  the  time 
Swedenborg  lived  and  wrote.  Infidelity  had  well-nigh 
palsied  every  limb,  and  a  cheerless,  heartless,  withering 
materialism  was  pressing  like  an  incubus  upon  her  vi- 
tals. Questions  had  been  asked  about  the  future  life, 
which  the  wisest  of  the  clergy  were  unable  to  answer. 
Many  had  come  to  deny,  and  many  more  to  doubt,  even 
the  soul's  immortality.  To  arrest  this  tide  of  skepticism, 
there  was  needed  just  such  a  disclosure  of  the  future  life 
and  of  the  grand  realities  of  the  spiritual  world,  as  that 
made  through  Swedenborg  ;  and  one  accompanied  with 
precisely  that  internal  and  rational  kind  of  evidence,  too, 
which  alone  could  satisfy  the  demands  of  a  reasoning 
and  reflecting  age. 

A  revelation  concerning  the  spiritual  world  not 
needed !  Useless,  say  you,  even  if  true !  Go  ask  that 
mother  as  she  bends  over  the  body  of  her  departed 
child,  and  presses  upon  its  marble  brow  the  last  fond 
tribute  of  a  mother's  love : — Ask  her  if  she  could  find 
no  solace  in  the  assured  conviction  that  her  little  one  is 
now  in  the  tender  embrace  of  loving  angels — yes,  and 
brighter,  healthier,  happier,  too,  and  fuller  of  exuberant 
life  and  bounding  joy  than  ever  before.    Or  ask  that 


OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 


31 


widowed  wife,  whose  streaming  eyes  and  pallid  cheek 
and  languid  frame  bespeak  an  agony  too  deep  for 
words: — Ask  her,  as  she  sees  the  coffin-lid  close  over 
the  remains  of  him  to  whom  her  affections  clung  with 
all  the  devotion  of  woman's  love,  whether  it  would  not 
lighten  somewhat  the  burden  of  her  grief,  to  know 
something  definite  about  that  realm  which  her  departed 
husband  entered  but  yesterday  : — Ask  if  it  would  not 
comfort  her  aching  heart  to  knozv  that  he  is  more  alive 
than  ever  before,  and  thinks  of  and  loves  her  still ;  that 
his  spirit  is  very  near  and  fondly  brooding  over  her  own  ; 
— breathing  into  her  soul  in  gentlest  whispers  the 
blessed  influences  of  heaven  (if  his  heart  were  set  on 
heavenly  things);  watching  over  her  tenderly,  inspiring 
her  with  generous  thoughts  and  noble  endeavors,  cheer- 
ing and  strengthening  her  in  every  good  work,  and 
ready,  perchance,  when  her  earthly  sojourn  is  ended, 
to  clasp  her  again  in  love's  embrace  :  Or  ask  that  youth 
or  maiden  who  stands  o'erwhelmed  with  anguish  by  the 
bedside  of  a  dying  father,  mother,  sister  or  brother,  and 
feels  as  if  the  extinction  of  this  mortal  life  were  the  end 
of  human  joys  and  hopes  :  Or  ask  that  sad  and  throng- 
ing crowd  who  mourn  the  departure  of  those  they  love, 
and  whose  dark  apparel  is  but  a  faint  emblem  of  their 
darker  sorrow,  and  the  funereal  gloom  that  shrouds  to 
them  the  spirit-land, — ask  them  if  a  truthful  revelation 
of  the  realities  of  that  world  to  which  their  friends  have 
so  lately  gone,  would  bring  no  comfort  to  their  riven 
hearts.  Ask  if  they  would  find  no  solace  in  the  unwav- 
ering conviction  that  their  loved  ones  are  still  near  and 
watching  over  them  for  good — inspiring  holy  thoughts 


32 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


and  sweet  affections  and  good  resolutions  and  high  en- 
deavor— fuller  of  life  and  joy  and  action  than  ever  be- 
fore. Or,  ask  the  thousands  who  have  felt  and  therefore 
knoiv  the  sustaining  power  of  this  new  revelation  in 
times  of  sore  bereavement ; — thousands  who  once  looked 
on  death  with  dread  dismay,  but  now  contemplate  it 
with  a  cheerful  serenity,  sometimes  even  with  a  holy 
joy.  Ask  them,  and  they  will  tell  you  the  use  of  this 
revelation — speaking  from  their  own  experience  of  its 
blessings.  They  will  tell  you  that  not  the  splendor  of 
empires,  nor  the  wealth  of  kingdoms,  nor  the  honor  of 
thrones,  nor  all  the  gold  and  glory  of  the  world,  can 
compare  in  value  with  the  truths  they  have  learned 
about  the  great  Hereafter  from  the  writings  of  the 
Swedish  seer. 

And  yet  in  all  that  we  have  here  said,  we  have 
scarcely  hinted  at  what  we  conceive  to  be  the  great 
practical  value  of  these  disclosures.  We  mean  their  di- 
rect influence  upon  the  life  of  the  receiver,  here  and 
now;  their  direct  and  powerful  tendency  to  repress  the 
evil  and  develop  the  good,  and  to  mould  the  character 
into  a  heavenly  form. 

Here,  then,  we  close  our  argument  against  the  objec- 
tions and  in  support  of  the  need  and  use  of  this  new 
revelation.  Here  we  rest  our  plea  for  its  thorough  and 
serious  examination.  The  candid  inquirer  will  find  here 
a  pneumatology  as  rational  as  it  is  beautiful ;  as  satisfy- 
ing to  the  sternest  demands  of  the  head,  as  it  is  to  the 
intensest  cravings  of  the  heart.  And  those  who  have 
studied  it  most  and  understand  it  best,  would  scarcely 
be  believed  were  they  to  tell  half  they  know  of  its  com- 


OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 


33 


forts  and  satisfactions,  its  great  practical  value  in  the 
formation  of  character.  Suffice  it  to  add,  that  the  Heav- 
enly Father  who  understands  our  human  needs,  and 
who  knows  how  to  give  good  and  only  good  gifts  to  his 
children,  has  mercifully  vouchsafed  this  revelation  in 
answer  to  a  deep  and  growing  want,  and  as  one  power- 
ful means  of  drawing  his  children  spiritually  nearer  to 
Himself  and  the  shining  ones  around  his  throne.  Infin- 
ite Wisdom  saw  the  need,  else  the  revelation  would  not 
have  been  made.  And  the  use  which  it  has  already 
performed,  the  darkness  and  doubts  it  has  so  effectually 
dissipated,  the  peace  and  satisfaction  it  has  afforded,  and 
the  support  and  solace  it  has  ministered  to  thousands  in 
times  of  sore  bereavement,  prove  that  it  is  neither  the 
creation  of  a  poet's  fancy,  nor  the  offspring  of  a  disor- 
dered brain.  And  if  the  revelation  be  true,  then  it  must 
have  come  from  God  out  of  heaven  ;  and  its  thankful 
and  reverent  reception  must  tend  to  lead  the  receiver  up 
to  Him  from  whom  it  came. 

But  is  it  true? — is  the  question.  Is  there  really  a 
spiritual  world,  inhabited  by  spirits  who  are  not  mere 
phantoms,  but  real,  substantial,  human  beings,  with 
spiritual  bodies  in  human  form  ?  If  so,  where  is  it,  and 
of  what  concern  is  it  to  us?  Arezw  spirits  clad  in  mate- 
rial vestments  which  death  will  shortly  relieve  us  of? 
And  shall  we  then  consciously  enter  the  spirit-world  as 
living,  conscious,  intelligent  men  and  women — spirits  in 
human  form  ?  And  has  God,  indeed,  been  pleased  to 
reveal  the  sublime  realities  of  that  world  ?  If  so,  what 
is  the  evidence  which  is  expected  to  satisfy  inquiring 
and  rational  minds  ? 

C 


34 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


The  answer  to  these  questions,  and  some  of  the  evi- 
dence which  we  think  ought  to  satisfy  candid  minds, 
will  be  given  in  the  following  chapters. 


HE  subject  of  angelology,  including  the  origin  as 


J-  well  as  the  nature  of  angels,  is  one  upon  which 
Christians  of  every  denomination  have  written  from  time 
to  time;  and  on  few  subjects  has  there  been  a  more 
general  agreement  than  on  this.  And  as  artists  some- 
times endeavor  to  heighten  the  effect  of  a  beautiful  pict- 
ure by  contrasting  it  with  something  hideous,  so  we 
may  be  excused  for  placing  the  Old  and  the  New  doc- 
trine concerning  the  origin  of  angels  side  by  side,  trust- 
ing that  the  truth  and  beauty  of  the  latter  may  thereby 
be  rendered  the  more  striking  by  the  contrast.  Such 
presentation,  too,  will  show  the  need  there  was  of  the 
revelation  made  through  Swedenborg. 

All  who  profess  the  Christian  religion,  believe  in  the 
existence  of  angels.  They  believe  them  to  be  spiritual 
beings — the  wise  and  happy  denizens  of  heaven.  They 
could  not  deny  their  existence  without  denying  the  ex- 
plicit teaching  of  the  Bible.  But  the  general  belief  hith- 
erto has  been,  that  angels  are  created  intelligences  of 
different  orders  intermediate  between  God  and  man; 
that  they  were  created  angels  in  the  beginning,  and  have 


III. 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  ANGELS. 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  AXGELS. 


35 


therefore  never  known  any  other  place  of  abode  than 
the  heaven  in  which  they  are  now  living.*  It  has  also 
been  generally  believed  by  Christians  that  a  portion  of 
these  innocent  and  happy  beings,  once  rose  in  rebellion 
against  the  government  of  heaven,  and  sought  to  over- 
throw the  Ruler  of  the  universe,  and  obtain  for  them- 
selves the  supremacy.  To  this  foul  revolt  they  are 
thought  to  have  been  instigated  by  one  more  wicked 
and  powerful,  but  once  more  wise  and  glorious,  than  the 
rest; — by  one  who, 

"  in  the  happy  realms  of  light. 

Clothed  with  transcendent  brightness,  didst  outshine 
Myriads  though  bright;" 

but  who, 

"  with  ambitious  aim 

Against  the  throne  and  monarchy  of  God, 
Raised  impious  war  in  heaven  and  battle  proud, 
With  vain  attempt." 

It  has  been  further  believed  that  the  leader  in  that  great 
rebellion,  being  defeated  in  his  impious  undertaking, 
was  cast  out  of  heaven  with  his  rebellious  crew,  and  be- 
came the  Prince  or  chieftain  of  the  bottomless  pit — the 


*  As  to  the  precise  time  of  their  creation,  whether  prior  or  posterior  to, 
or  simultaneously  with,  the  creation  of  the  material  world.  Christians  have 
not  been  agreed.  Nor  has  there  been  entire  agreement  as  to  their  nature. 
The  prevalent  opinion,  however,  has  bee  n,  that  they  are  incorporeal — 
pure  spirits  destitute  of  any  kind  of  l».dy,  )ct  capable  of  assuming  a  body 
at  pleasure.  Some  have  supposed  thai  tlu  y  have  bodies  of  the  purest 
kind  of  air  or  ether;  and  one  of  tlic  Chrisiian  Fathers  even  went  so  far  as 
to  give  form  to  their  aerial  bodies,  declaring  his  belief  that  they  are 
spherical. 


36 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


Satan  whereof  the  New  Testament  speaks.  To  quote 
again  from  Milton,  who  reflects  the  religious  beliefs  of 
his  times : 

"  Ilim  the  Almighty  power 

Hurled  hea.Iluiig  from  the  ethereal  sky, 
Willi  hideous  ruin  and  conibuNtion,  down 
To  bottomless  perdition,  there  to  dwell 
In  adamantine  chains  and  penal  fu  e. 
Who  durst  defy  the  Omnipotent  to  arms." 

And  that  prime  instigator  of  the  supposed  rebellion  in 
heaven,  along  with  those  who  enlisted  under  his  banner, 
are  what  Christians  have  generally  understood  to  be 
meant  by  "  the  Devil  and  his  angels,"  also  by  "  the 
fallen  angels."  Nor  is  it  in  poetry  alone  that  this  doc- 
trine respecting  the  angels,  is  to  be  met  with.  We  find 
the  same  set  forth  in  sober  prose  by  both  Catholic  and 
Protestant  writers.  And  we  are  not  aware  that  any  dif- 
ferent doctrine  on  the  subject,  has  ever  gained  currency 
among  any  considerable  class  of  Christians  outside  of 
the  small  body  known  as  the  New  Christian  Church. 
{See  tJie  London  Encyclopcedia,  Art.  Angel) 

Now,  look  at  this  whole  story  about  the  angels,  which 
has  gained  currency  in  the  church  and  made  a  part  of 
Christian  theology — look  at  it  in  the  light  of  reason  and 
common  sense.  Does  it  not  wear  very  much  the  ap- 
pearance of  ancient  fable  ?  Does  it  not  look  like  the 
offspring  of  heathen  superstition  ?  For  see  what  it  re- 
quires us  to  believe.  First,  that  God  created  an  order 
(or  several  orders)  of  intelligent  creatures — pure  spirits 
destitute  of  any  form  or  body,  though  capable  of  assum- 
ing both  ad  libitum — and  far  superior  to  man  in  knowl- 


THE  OKIGhW  OF  ANGELS. 


37 


edge  and  wisdom,  constituting  a  class  of  beings  inter- 
mediate between  the  Creator  and  the  human  race* 
Second,  that  one  of  the  wisest  and  most  exalted  of  these 
beings,  conceived  the  idea — an  idea  such  as  no  one  but 
the  veriest  dolt  and  monster  were  capable  of  conceiving 
— of  wresting  the  government  of  heaven  from  the  hand 
of  Omnipotence,  and  actually  waged  war  against  the 
Almighty  in  the  hope  of  gaining  the  supremacy  ;  and 
that,  failing  in  the  attempt,  he  and  his  followers  were 
cast  down  from  heaven  into  the  gulf  of  despair,  where 
they  still  cherish  their  hostility  towards  the  Ruler  of  the 
universe.  Bear  in  mind,  also,  that  this  insurrection,  war, 
and  ejectment  from  heaven,  are  predicated  of  pure  spir- 
its— incorporeal  beings — creatures  utterly  destitute  of 
any  kind  of  body  or  shape !  We  submit  that  such  ex- 
travagances are  the  very  height  of  folly  and  nonsense. 
One  would  think  they  had  only  to  be  looked  at  in  a  lit- 
tle rational  light,  to  be  instantly  repudiated. 

Let  us  now  turn  to  the  doctrine  on  this  subject  as  re- 
vealed through  Swedenborg.  He  claims  to  have  en- 
joyed long  and  open  intercourse  with  the  spiritual 
world,  and  to  have  made  a  truthful  revelation  respecting 
both  angels  and  devils — their  origin  as  well  as  their 
character  and  condition.   The  following  are  some  of  the 


*  This  was  the  general  belief  of  the  old  heathen  philosophers,  as  it  is 
of  the  Mahometans  at  the  present  day.  The  ancient  Greeks  believed  that 
the  demons  (which  word  was  used  by  them  in  a  good  sense)  were  created 
such,  and  held  a  middle  rank  between  the  gods  and  men.  Thus  Plutarch 
says :  "  Those  seem  to  me  to  have  solved  very  many  and  great  difficulties 
or  doubts,  who  place  the  demons  sv  /iktu  6t<av  nai  avQeovusv — intermediate 
betaieen  gods  and  tiien., 
4 


38 


nr.  A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


things  he  tells  us  about  the  human  soul  and  the  origin 
of  angels: 

"The  spirit  of  man,  or  the  soul,  is  the  interior  man 
which  lives  after  death,  and  is  an  organized  substance 
[spiritual,  not  material],  being  adjoined  to  the  body  dur- 
ing man's  abode  in  the  world." — A.  C.  n.  1594. 

"The  soul  which  is  said  to  live  after  death,  is  none 
other  than  the  man  himself  who  lives  in  the  body  ;  that 
is,  it  is  the  interior  man  who  acts  in  the  world  by  means 
of  the  body,  and  enables  the  body  to  live.  This  man 
when  freed  from  the  body,  is  called  a  spirit,  and  appears 
altogether  in  the  human  form  ;  yet  he  cannot  be  seen 
with  the  eyes  of  the  body  but  with  those  of  the  spirit, 
before  which  he  appears  as  a  man  in  the  world,  having 
the  senses  of  touch,  smell,  hearing  and  seeing  much 
more  acute  than  in  the  world  .  .  .  together  with  all 
the  members  and  organs  that  man  possesses." — Ibid.  n. 
6054. 

"  From  all  my  experience  which  is  now  of  many 
years,  I  can  declare  that  the  form  of  the  angels  is  in 
every  respect  human  ;  that  they  have  faces,  eyes,  ears, 
breasts,  arms,  hands  and  feet;  that  they  see,  hear  and 
converse  with  each  other;  in  a  word,  that  they  lack 
nothing  which  belongs  to  man,  except  the  material 
body.  I  have  seen  them  in  a  light  which  exceeds  by 
many  degrees  the  noon-day  light  of  the  world  ;  and  in 
that  light  I  observed  all  parts  of  their  faces  more  dis- 
tinctly and  clearly  than  ever  I  did  the  face  of  men  on 
earth. 

"  I  have  often  told  the  angels  that  men  in  the  Chris- 
tian world  are  in  such  blind  ignorance  concerning  an- 
gels and  spirits,  as  to  believe  them  to  be  minds  without 
form,  and  mere  thoughts,  concerning  which  they  have 
no  other  idea  than  as  of  something  ethereal  in  which 
there  is  somewhat  vital.   And  because  they  thus  ascribe 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  ANGELS. 


39 


to  them  nothing  human  except  a  thinking  principle, 
they  imagine  that  they  cannot  see,  because  they  have 
no  eyes ;  nor  hear,  because  they  have  no  ears ;  nor 
speak,  because  they  have  neither  mouth  nor  tongue. 
The  angels  said  in  reply,  that  they  knew  such  a  belief 
exists  with  many  in  the  world,  and  that  it  is  the  prevail- 
ing belief  among  the  learned,  and  also  to  their  astonish- 
ment among  the  clergy." — H.  H.  n.  74,  '5. 

"  The  like  may  be  said  concerning  a  man  in  whom 
the  church  is,  as  concerning  an  angel  in  whom  heaven 
is,  that  he  is  a  church  in  the  least  form,  as  an  angel  is  a 
heaven  in  the  least  form  ;  and  further,  that  a  man  in 
whom  the  church  is,  equally  with  an  angel,  is  a  heaven; 
for  man  was  created  that  he  might  come  into  heaven 
and  become  an  angel.  Wherefore,  he  who  has  good 
[or  is  in  good]  from  the  Lord,  is  a  man-angel." — Ibid.  57. 

"  It  is  altogether  unknown  in  the  Christian  world  that 
heaven  and  hell  are  from  the  human  race.  For  it  is  be- 
lieved that  angels  were  created  from  the  beginning,  and 
that  this  was  the  origin  of  heaven ;  and  that  the  devil 
or  satan  was  an  angel  of  light ;  but  because  he  became 
rebellious,  was  cast  down  with  his  crew;  and  that  this 
was  the  origin  of  hell.  The  angels  wonder  very  much 
that  such  a  belief  should  prevail  in  the  Christian  world ; 
and  still  more  that  nothing  whatever  is  known  about 
heaven,  when  yet  it  is  a  primary  point  of  doctrine  in  the 
church.  And  because  such  ignorance  prevails,  the)'  re- 
joiced in  heart  that  it  has  pleased  the  Lord  at  this  time  to 
reveal  to  mankind  many  things  concerning  both  heaven 
and  hell ;  and  thereby  to  dispel,  as  far  as  possible,  the 
darkness  which  is  every  day  increasing,  because  the  church 
has  come  to  its  end.  Therefore  they  desire  me  to  declare 
positively  from  their  mouths,  that  there  is  not  a  single 
angel  in  the  whole  heaven  who  was  originally  created 
such,  nor  any  devil  in  hell  who  was  created  an  an- 


40 


HE  A  VEK  KE  VEALED. 


gel  of  light  and  cast  down;  but  that  all,  both  in  heaven 
and  hell,  are  from  the  human  race ;  in  heaven,  those 
who  lived  in  the  world  in  heavenly  love  and  faith  ;  in 
hell,  those  who  lived  in  infernal  love  and  faith  ;  and  that 
hell  in  the  whole  complex  is  what  is  called  the  devil 
and  satan." — H.  H.  n.  311. 

"  That  heaven  is  from  the  human  race  may  be  further 
evident  from  this,  that  angelic  minds  and  human  minds 
are  similar.  Eoth  enjoy  the  faculty  of  understanding, 
perceiving  and  willing.  Both  are  formed  to  receive 
heaven;  for  the  human  mind  is  capable  of  wisdom  as 
well  as  tlie  angelic  mind  ;  but  it  does  not  become  so 
wise  in  the  world,  because  it  is  in  an  earthly  body,  and 
in  that  the  spiritual  mind  thinks  naturally. 

"  h'rom  these  observations  it  may  be  seen  that  the  in- 
ternal of  man,  which  is  called  his  spirit  is,  in  its  essence, 
an  angel ;  and  when  released  from  the  earthly  body  it 
is  in  the  human  form  the  same  as  an  angel.  But  when 
the  internal  of  man  is  not  open  above  but  only  beneath, 
then  after  its  release  from  the  body  it  is  still  in  the 
human  form,  but  hideous  and  diabolical ;  for  it  cannot 
look  upward  to  heaven,  but  only  downward  to  hell." — 
Ibid.  n.  314. 

Such  is  Swedenborg's  uniform  teaching  on  this  sub- 
ject, reiterated  many  times  in  his  writings.  Through- 
out all  his  theological  works,  which  occupied  him  nearly 
thirty  years  in  writing,  we  find  nothing  at  variance  with 
this.  Let  us  now  examine  his  assertions  in  the  light  of 
reason  and  Scripture. 

The  sum  of  what  is  taught  in  the  passages  we  have 
quoted,  is  :  That  man  was  created  with  the  capacity  of 
becoming  an  angel,  and  consequently  of  enjoying  eter- 
nal happiness  in  heaven :  That  the  soul  or  spirit  which 


THE  ORIGhY  OF  ANGELS. 


41 


continues  to  live  in  the  spiritual  world  after  the  body- 
dies,  is  in  the  human  form,  and  is  the  real  man  or 
woman :  That  all  the  angels  who  are  also  in  this  form, 
having  a  spiritual  and  substantial  organism,  are  from  the 
human  race,  and  were  once  inhabitants  of  this  or  some 
other  earth ;  and  the  same  is  true  of  the  devils  :  Conse- 
quently no  angel  or  devil  was  ever  created  such ;  but 
every  individual  in  heaven  and  in  hell,  has  once  had  his 
abode  or  commenced  his  existence  in  the  natural  realm. 
Angels,  therefore,  are  more  perfect  or  fully  developed 
men  ;  and  men — good  men — are  angels  in  embryo. 
The  spiritual  or  heavenly  is  evolved  from  the  carnal  or 
earthly  man,  by  an  orderly  divine  process  known  to 
Christian  theology  as  regeneration. 

Now,  is  there  anything  unreasonable  in  this,  as  we 
have  seen  there  is  in  the  old  doctrine  ?  Is  there  not, 
on  the  contrar)',  something  in  it  which  strikes  us  agree- 
ably on  its  first  announcement? — Something  which 
avouches  its  alliance  to  the  general  tenor  of  all  God's 
arrangements? — Something  which  tallies  with  that  uni- 
versal law  under  which  the  higher  and  more  perfect  arc 
successively  evolved  from  the  lower  and  less  perfect 
forms  of  being? 

All  Christians  believe  in  the  immortality  of  the  soul ; 
and  the  soul  or  spirit  is  the  real  man.  They  all  believe 
that  the  soul  does  not  die,  but  survives  when  its  mate- 
rial vestment  has  crumbled  to  decay.  And  if  man,  after 
the  death  of  the  body,  continues  to  live  as  man,  en- 
dowed with  human  attributes — possessing  human  affec- 
tions, dispositions,  thoughts  and  feelings — then  he  must 
exist  in  the  human  form.  For  to  suppose  human  char- 
4* 


42 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


acter  and  attributes  to  exist  apart  from  the  human  form, 
were  contrary  to  all  reason  and  all  analogy. 

Christians  also  believe  that  the  world  which  every 
good  man  enters  after  death,  is  a  higher  and  more  per- 
fect world  than  the  one  in  which  we  are  now  living.  If 
this  be  so,  then  the  good  man  should  be  a  better  man — 
should  be  in  a  higher  state  as  to  affection  and  thought 
— in  the  other  world  than  he  is  or  has  been  in  this.  He 
should  be  more  perfectly  human  in  disposition  and 
character,  more  wise,  kind  and  loving;  therefore  he 
should  be  more  truly  human  in  form.  In  short,  he 
should  be  in  all  respects  a  more  perfect  man  than  he 
was  while  on  earth.  In  other  words,  he  should  be  an 
angel.  Otherwise  there  would  not  be  that  perfect  agree- 
ment between  himself  and  the  increased  perfections  of 
the  other  world,  which  might  reasonably  be  expected. 

The  new  doctrine  that  angels  are  from  the  human 
race,  and  that  good  men  are  embryo  angels,  has  the  un- 
deniable testimony  of  reason  and  analogy  in  its  support. 
For  no  law  is  more  clearly  revealed  in  the  volume  of 
nature,  than  that  of  progress  from  the  imperfect  and 
rudimental  to  the  perfect  and  mature ; — from  the  lower 
and  simpler  to  the  higher  and  more  complex  forms  of 
being.  Where  among  all  the  works  of  God,  do  we  find 
any  living  thing  created  full-formed  and  perfect  in  the 
beginning?  There  is  no  such  thing.  Every  creature 
that  swims,  walks  or  flies,  and  every  tree  and  plant  that 
springs  from  the  bosom  of  the  earth,  commences  its  ex- 
istence in  a  comparatively  simple  and  imperfect  form, 
and  goes  on  increasing  in  complexity  and  perfection  as 
it  advances  towards  the  end  for  which  it  was  created. 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  ANGELS. 


43 


It  is  known  to  science  that  all  animals  commence  their 
existence  from  eggs  which  are  quite  uniform  in  tlieir 
shape  and  structure.  There  is,  therefore,  a  stage  in 
man's  existence,  when,  to  human  eyes,  he  does  not  dif- 
fer essentially  from  the  rudimental  form  of  a  fish,  a  frog, 
or  a  viper.  But  as  life  unfolds  from  this  primary  form, 
the  animal  undergoes  various  changes,  gradually  ascend- 
ing from  lower  and  simpler  to  higher  and  more  complex 
forms,  or  passing  from  a  less  to  a  more  perfect  state. 
A  familiar  illustration  of  this  universal  law,  is  seen  in 
the  changes  which  insects  undergo  before  reaching  the 
perfected  form  of  butterflies.  First,  the  egg;  then  suc- 
ceeds the  larva  or  worm,  which  is  a  higher  form  of  life 
than  the  egg;  next,  the  caterpillar;  then  the  pupa  or 
chrysalis  ;  lastly,  the  creature  dies — on  the  outside,  at 
least — and  out  of  that  dead  covering  springs  a  beautiful 
butterfly,  the  perfected  form  of  this  insect  life.  And 
similar  is  the  case  with  every  other  form  of  life  whether 
belonging  to  the  animal  or  the  vegetable  kingdom. 
From  a  simple,  rudimental  and  comparatively  imperfect 
form,  it  goes  on  steadily  unfolding,  and  gradually  as- 
suming one  that  is  higher  and  more  perfect,  until  it 
reaches  the  end  of  its  creation. 

And  the  case  is  similar  with  man  regarded  merely  as 
an  inhabitant  of  the  natural  world,  and  as  standing  at 
the  head  of  the  animal  kingdom.  Scientists  tell  us 
that,  previous  to  birth,  he  undergoes  a  variety  of 
changes,  and  at  different  stages  in  his  development 
simulates  the  forms  of  various  lower  orders  of  animals. 
However  this  may  be,  we  know  that  at  the  time  of  birth 
he  is  but  feebly  and  imperfectly  developed.    In  his 


44 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


rudimental  or  infantile  form,  some  of  the  organs  which 
belong  to  him  in  his  mature  state  are  wanting,  and 
others  are  very  imperfect  or  but  partially  formed.  Yet 
his  form  in  general  is  human.  There  is  the  rudimentary 
man.  But  as  to  the  higher  capacities  of  his  nature — as 
to  those  intellectual  and  moral  powers  which  give  to 
him  the  supremacy  over  all  other  creatures,  and  arc  the 
essential  human  characteristics — they  do  not  manifest 
themselves  at  all  at  birth.  No  living  creature  is  more 
destitute  of  the  properly  human  faculties,  than  a  new- 
born babe.  But  as  this  rudimental  form  unfolds  be- 
neath the  salutary  influences  of  heaven  and  earth,  the 
man  gradually  comes  forth,  and  increases  in  wisdom 
and  in  stature. 

This  law,  then — the  law  of  progress  from  the  lower 
to  the  higher,  or  from  the  less  to  the  more  perfect,  in 
everything  endowed  with  life,  until  it  reaches  the  ful- 
ness and  perfection  of  its  being — stands  revealed  on  every 
page  of  the  volume  of  nature.  Nor  do  we  meet  with  a 
solitary  exception  to  this  law.  The  Divine  creative  en- 
ergy obeys  it  everywhere.  "  The  principle  of  progres- 
sive advance,"  says  Prof  Bush,  "  from  the  imperfect  to 
the  finished,  from  the  rude  to  the  refined,  from  the  in- 
fantile to  the  mature,  from  primordial  elements  to  elab- 
orate formations,  from  tender  germs  to  ripened  fruits, 
from  initial  workings  to  ultimate  consummations,  is 
everywhere  apparent."  Yet  what  a  palpable  contradic- 
tion of  this  great  law,  is  the  doctrine  that  angels  were 
created  such,  full-formed  and  perfect  in  the  beginning! 

Reasoning  analogically,  therefore,  we  arc  brought  to 
the  conclusion  that  angels,  like  all  other  created  beings, 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  ANGELS. 


45 


must  have  had  their  initial  or  rudimental  state.  Where 
and  what  was  that  state  ?  Where  and  what  was  the 
rudimental  or  embryo  angel?  Can  the  Old  Theology- 
answer  this  question  ?  And  if  this  world  is  not  our 
final  home,  if  we  were  created  to  live  forever  in  another 
and  a  higher  realm,  what  shall  we  be  in  that  higher 
realm  ? — provided  that  we  here  obey  the  laws  of  our 
higher  life,  and  thus  give  to  our  spirits  a  right  direc- 
tion in  this  their  rudimental  state.  Shall  we  not  be 
more  fully  developed  and  more  perfect  men  ?  Shall  we 
not  be  in  a  higher  state  of  love  and  wisdom — nearer  the 
moral  likeness  of  the  Creator?  In  a  word,  shall  we  not 
be  angels  ? 

Reason  and  analogy,  then,  are  clearly  in  favor  of 
Swcdenborg's  teaching  respecting  the  origin  of  angels, 
and  as  clearly  opposed  to  the  commonly  received  doc- 
trine. Let  us  now  turn  to  the  Scripture  and  see  what 
is  its  testimony  on  the  subject. 

And  we  remark  first,  that  the  Bible  nowhere  speaks 
of  the  creation  of  angels.  It  tells  (in  the  literal  sense) 
of  the  creation  of  everything  else,  of  the  sun  and  moon, 
the  earth  and  the  seas,  the  vegetable  and  the  animal 
kingdoms,  and  lastly  of  man  the  crowning  work  of  the 
Creator's  hands  ;  but  never  of  angels.  As  to  the  crea- 
tion of  an  order  of  beings  intermediate  between  God  and 
men,  the  Scripture  says  not  a  word. 

In  the  next  place,  the  Bible  teaches  that  "  God  cre- 
ated man  in  his  own  image"  (Gen.  i.  27).  How,  then, 
is  it  possible  that  there  could  be  an  order  of  beings 
above  man  ?  A  different  order  of  beings  must  needs 
have  a  different  form  from  the  human ;  and  if  so,  they 


46 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


would  not  be  in  the  image  of  God.  Stretch  your  im- 
agination to  the  utmost,  and  you  cannot  conceive  of  an 
orc'er  of  beings  superior  to  man,  yet  differing  from  him 
in  outward  form.  For  in  so  far  as  their  form  should 
differ  from  the  human,  they  would  not  be  in  the  image 
of  their  Creator  ;  and  therefore  they  would  be  inferior  to 
man,  unless  we  admit  that  an  order  of  beings  created  in 
the  Divine  likeness,  may  be  inferior  to  another  order 
created  in  the  likeness  of  something  else — an  admission 
which  would  be  most  absurd.  For  God  is  the  only  per- 
fect One.  Among  finite  beings,  therefore,  those  must 
be  most  exalted  and  perfect  who  most  nearly  resemble 
Him. 

Is  it  said  that  a  moral  likeness  to  his  Maker  is  what 
is  referred  to  in  Gen.  i.  27  ?  Be  it  so.  But  who  needs 
to  be  told  that,  among  created  objects,  the  form  is  ever 
in  correspondence  with  the  essence  ? — That  this  is  a 
sovereign  and  universal  law  in  creation?  Even  chil- 
dren know  that  the  properly  human  characteristics  can- 
not exist  under  the  form  of  a  fish  or  a  crocodile — un- 
der any  form,  indeed,  other  than  the  human. 

No.  We  can  conceive  of  a  race  of  wiser  and  better 
men  than  any  now  existing,  but  they  will  not  be  a  dif- 
ferent order  of  beings.  They  will  be  simply  an  im- 
proved variety  of  the  same  order,  more  truly  human, 
more  perfect  men  both  in  their  internal  character  and 
their  outward  form.  They  will  still  be  men,  and  all 
the  more  so  for  being  truer  likenesses  of  their  Maker. 
Tiie  text  in  Genesis,  therefore,  warrants  the  assertion 
that  there  is  not  and  cannot  be  any  such  order  of  beings 
between  God  and  man  as  Christians  have  supposed  an- 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  ANGELS. 


A7 


gels  to  be ;  for  the  human  form  is  the  perfection  of  all 
forms,  and  true  human  life,  therefore,  the  perfection  of 
all  life ;  and  a  good  man  such  as  an  angel  is  declared  to 
be,  is  the  perfection  of  created  beings. 

That  this  conclusion  is  legitimate,  may  be  further 
argued  from  the  fact  that  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in 
whom  dwelt  "all  the  fulness  of  the  Godhead  bodily," 
was  in  the  form  of  a  man,  not  only  while  He  taberna- 
cled in  the  flesh,  but  when  He  subsequently  appeared 
in  the  spiritual  realm  to  the  opened  eyes  of  his  disciples. 
A  fact  which  proves  that  the  human  form  is  capable  of 
receiving  the  divine  love  and  wisdom  in  all  fulness. 
Hence  it  must  be  the  perfection  of  all  forms ;  and 
among  created  beings,  therefore,  there  cannot  be  any 
higher  order — any  nearer  to  the  Divine  image  and  like- 
ness— than  man. 

But  we  have  further  and  more  conclusive  evidence 
from  Scripture.  For  many  instances  of  the  appearance 
of  angels  to  men  in  the  flesh,  are  therein  recorded;  and 
in  every  such  instance  they  appeared  in  the  human 
form — as  men.  Not  only  so,  but  they  are  often  called 
men  by  the  inspired  writers.  Thus  when  the  Lord  ap- 
peared to  Abraham  in  the  plains  of  Mamre  through  the 
medium  of  angels,  it  is  said  :  "  And  he  lifted  up  his 
eyes  and  looked,  and  lo,  three  vien  stood  by  him " 
(Gen.  xviii.  2).  So  of  the  two  angels  that  appeared  to 
Lot  as  he  sat  in  the  gate  of  Sodom.  These  are  after- 
wards called  men.  The  Sodomites  inquiring  after  them, 
said :  "  Where  are  the  men  who  came  in  to  thee  this 
night"  (Gen.  xix.  5)?  And  Lot  said:  "Unto  these 
men  do  nothing  "  (v.  8.  Sec  also  vs.  10,  12,  16).  Again, 


48 


HE  A  VEiV  RE  VEALED. 


when  the  angel  of  the  Lord  appeared  to  the  wife  of 
Manoah,  it  is  said  :  "  The  woman  came  and  told  her 
husband,  saying:  A  man  of  God  came  unto  me,  and 
his  countenance  was  like  the  countenance  of  an  angel 
of  God"  (Judges  xiii.  6.  Also  vs.  g,  lo).  So,  too,  the 
angel  Gabriel  whom  the  prophet  Daniel  saw  in  vision, 
is  called  "the  diuji  Gabriel"  (Dan.  ix.  21).  And  the 
man  whom  the  prophet  Zechariah  beheld  in  vision 
"among  the  myrtle  trees,"  is  immediately  after  called 
"the  angel  of  the  Lord"  (Zech.  i.  8,  11).  Again,  when 
the  women  came  early  in  the  morning  to  the  Lord's 
sepulchre,  and  had  entered  into  it,  Luke  says :  "  Behold 
two  vicn  stood  by  them  in  shining  garments  "  (xxiv.  4). 
And  John  says  that  they  saw  "  two  angels  in  white,  sit- 
ting, the  one  at  the  head  and  the  other  at  the  feet  where 
the  body  of  Jesus  had  lain"  (xx.  1 2) — proving  conclu- 
sively the  human  form  of  angels  and  their  generic  iden- 
tity with  the  human  race.  Again,  when  the  seer  of  Pat- 
mos  fell  down  to  worship  before  the  feet  of  an  angel, 
the  angel  said :  "  See  thou  do  it  not ;  for  I  am  thy  fel- 
low servant,  and  of  thy  brethren  the  prophets,  and  of 
them  which  keep  the  sayings  of  this  book  " — thus  plain- 
ly afiRrming  his  human  nature,  and  his  consequent  kin- 
ship to  our  race.  And  that  an  angel  is  none  other  than 
a  thoroughly  regenerate  man — one  who  has  attained  to 
the  full  stature  of  .spiritual  manhood  and  laid  aside  his 
material  body,  is  evident  from  his  measure  as  given  in 
the  Apocalypse.  For  the  inspired  apostle  tells  us,  that, 
having  measured  the  wall  of  the  Holy  City  when  he 
was  in  the  spirit,  he  found  it  to  be  "  the  measure  of  a 
man  [meaning  a  true  or  regenerate  man],  that  is,  of  the 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  AXGELS. 


49 


angcV  (Rev.  xxi.  17).  It  is  as  true  in  morals  as  in 
physics  that  two  objects  which  are  equal  to,  or  having 
the  same  measure  as,  a  third,  must  be  equal  to  each 
other.  So  if  the  measure  of  the  celestial  city  be  that  of 
a  man  and  likewise  of  the  angel,  then  the  moral  dimen- 
sions of  a  true  man  must  be  the  same  as  those  of  an 
angel,  and  the  two  must  belong  to  one  and  the  same 
order  of  created  intelligences. 

Then  consider  the  myriads  of  angels  whom  John  saw, 
and  whose  hymns  of  thanksgiving  and  praise  he  heard, 
when  "  in  the  spirit  "  ;  all  of  whom  appear  to  have  been 
in  the  human  form.  And  not  only  so,  but  we  are  told 
that  "  a  great  multitude  "  of  that  angelic  host,  were  "  of 
all  nations  and  kingdoms  and  people  and  tongues,"  and 
"  stood  before  the  Lamb,  clothed  with  white  robes,  and 
palms  in  their  hands."  And  when  it  was  asked,  "  What 
are  these  who  are  arrayed  in  white  robes,  and  whence 
came  they?"  the  answer  was,  "These  are  they  who 
came  out  of  great  tribulation,  and  have  washed  their 
robes  and  made  them  white  in  the  blooc  of  the  Lamb  " 
— showing  that  they  all  belonged  to  the  human  race, 
and  had  once  constituted  a  portion  of  the  tempted  and 
struggling  ones  of  this  mundane  sphere. 

What  need  of  further  evidence  on  the  subject,  from 
either  the  volume  of  nature  or  revelation? 

But  some  may  ask,  What  then  are  we  to  do  with 
those  passages  in  the  Bible  which  speak  of  "  the  angels 
which  kept  not  their  first  estate,"  but  "  sinned,"  and 
were  therefore  "  cast  down  to  hell  "  ?  (Jude  vi.  2.  Pe- 
ter ii.  4).  If  the  inquirer  regards  the  Epistles  as  equally 
inspired,  and  therefore  of  equal  authority,  with  the  Gos- 
5  D 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


pels,  we  would  simply  refer  him,  for  an  answer,  to  the 
criticisms  of  these  passages  by  Prof  Moses  Stuart, 
whose  orthodoxy  was  never  called  in  question,  and 
whose  learning  and  research  were  such  as  to  place  him 
in  the  very  foremost  rank  of  biblical  scholars.  In  his 
work  on  the  Apocalypse,  Prof  Stuart,  after  a  very  care- 
ful and  thorough  examination  of  these  passages,  does 
not  hesitate  to  pronounce  them  quotations  (doubtless 
from  memory)  from  the  apocryphal  book  of  Enoch,  and 
therefore  wholly  destitute  of  divine  authority  (see  Stuart 
on  the  Apoc,  vol.  i.,  pp.  50-73).  The  conclusions  reached 
by  the  learned  Professor,  may  be  summarily  stated 
thus : 

1st.  That  this  apocryphal  book  of  Enoch  was  gener- 
ally known  to  the  early  Christian  writers — so  generally 
as  to  render  it  highly  probable  that  all  were  familiar 
with  its  contents.  2d.  That  it  was  held  by  them  in  high 
esteem,  some  of  them  regarding  it  as  canonical  and  of 
divine  authority.  3d.  That  the  contents  of  this  book 
arc  of  such  a  nature  as  to  leave  no  reasonable  ground 
for  doubt  that  the  statements  in  regard  to  the  apostate 
angels  made  by  Jude  and  Peter,  were  derived  from  this 
source  ;  for  this  book  makes  frequent  mention  of  them, 
of  their  being  bound  in  chains,  kept  in  darkness  and  in 
prison,  reserved  for  judgment,  and  the  like;  each  of 
which  circumstances  is  mentioned  by  these  apostles. 

Such,  then,  is  the  acknowledged  foundation  on  which 
this  absurd  and  heathenish  doctrine  concerning  the  pre- 
existence,  apostasy  and  punishment  of  the  angels  rests. 
From  the  apocryphal  book  of  Enoch  as  its  source, 
through  the  epistles  of  Jude  and  Peter  as  channels,  the 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  ANGELS. 


51 


doctrine  has  flowed  into  the  minds  of  Christians  and 
been  generally  accepted  for  divinely  revealed  truth. 
And  as  this  book  of  Enoch  is  now  regarded  by  all  Prot- 
estant Christendom  as  utterly  destitute  of  divine  au- 
thority, therefore  it  must  be  conceded  that  the  passages 
in  Peter  and  Jude's  epistles,  obviously  taken  from  this 
book,  furnish  no  support  to  the  absurd  doctrine  they 
have  been  so  often  cited  to  prove. 

And  now  apply  to  each  of  these  doctrines — the  Old 
and  the  New — that  highest  and  surest  test  of  truth,  its 
obvious  practical  tendency.  Which  is  most  benign  and 
wholesome  in  its  influence  on  the  believer's  life  and 
character?  According  to  the  Old  view,  the  angels  are 
not  vicn,  and  never  were.  They  are  quite  outside  the 
pale  of  our  common  humanity,  created  another  and  dif- 
ferent order  of  beings  from  ourselves.  What  matters  it 
to  us,  then,  how  wise  and  good  and  glorious  they  may 
be  ?  For  with  all  our  strivings  after  the  heavenly  life, 
with  all  our  acts  of  self-denial  and-  self-crucifixion,  with 
all  our  patient  and  persevering  endeavors  to  follow  the 
Lord  in  the  regeneration,  we  can  never  become  angels. 
Our  human  nature  renders  it  impossible.  We  are  a  dif- 
ferent order  of  beings. 

Nor  does  the  Old  doctrine  respecting  the  nature  and 
origin  of  devils  address  itself  to  human  fears,  any  more 
than  that  respecting  the  nature  and  origin  of  angels  ad- 
dresses itself  to  human  hopes.  For  it  teaches  that  the 
devils,  too,  are  a  different  order  of  beings  from  us — dif- 
ferent in  their  original  nature  and  constitution  ;  that  they 
are  fallen  angels,  and  consequently  were  never  men  like 


52 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


ourselves.  Of  what  concern,  therefore,  is  it  to  us  to  know 
the  character  or  manner  of  hfe  of  the  devils,  since  we  can 
never  become  one  of  them.  We  belong  to  a  different 
genus.  No  man,  therefore,  however  wicked  and  unre- 
pentant, is  to  be  regarded  as  a  rudimental  devil. 

But  the  New  doctrine  teaches  that  both  angels  and 
devils  are  from  the  human  race ;  that  they  are  all  par- 
takers of  our  common  humanity,  and  were  once  men  like 
ourselves.  It  teaches  that  we  were  all  created  with  the 
capacity  of  ultimately  becoming  angels,  and  that  the  laws 
of  our  higher  or  spiritual  nature  are  the  very  laws  of  the 
angelic  life.  And  not  only  so,  but  that  we  shall  actually 
become  either  angels  or  devils,  according  as  we  freely 
obey  or  disobey  these  divinely  revealed  laws.  It  teaches 
that  this  present  world  is  the  seminary  of  both  the  up- 
per and  the  nether  realms  ;  that  men  in  the  flesh  are  rudi- 
mental angels  or  rudimental  devils. 

Thus  the  New  doctrine  brings  us  into  close  and  vital 
relationship  with  the  angels  of  heaven.  It  affirms  our 
near  affinity — nay,  our  absolute  identity — with  them,  as 
to  our  nature  or  spiritual  constitution.  It  reveals  them 
to  us  as  sympathizing  and  loving  brothers,  possessing  a 
common  nature  with  ourselves,  having  once  like  us  ex- 
perienced the  bondage  of  selfishness  and  sin,  and  through 
a  course  of  varied  discipline  suited  to  each  one's  state — 
through  disappointments  and  sorrows,  through  struggles 
and  sore  temptations,  through  faith  and  prayer  and  re- 
pentance and  self-denial — have  become  cleansed  of  their 
natural  defilements,  and  elevated  to  their  present  state  of 
heavenly  wisdom  and  serene  peace.  Thus  the  New  doc- 
trine appeals  strongly  to  human  hopes.    It  discloses  the 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  ANGELS. 


53 


grand  capabilities  of  our  nature,  opens  up  to  our  mental 
vision  sublime  and  glorious  possibilities,  and  prompts 
us,  by  the  hope  of  one  day  becoming  wise  and  happy 
angels,  to  a  resolute  and  persevering  struggle  against  the 
evils  that  infest  our  bosoms. 

And  by  teaching  us  that  the  devils,  also,  are  from  the 
-human  race  and  were  once  men  like  ourselves,  the  New 
doctrine  appeals  no  less  to  human  fears  than  to  human 
hopes.  It  discloses  to  us  those  marred  and  distorted 
forms  of  humanity — the  denizens  of  the  nether  realms, 
yet  created  with  the  capacity  of  becoming  angels — and 
proclaims  the  solemn  truth  that  we,  too,  may  become, 
yes,  sliall  become  just  such  inverted  images  of  the  Di- 
vine, if  we  turn  our  backs  upon  the  Lord  and  disregard 
the  precepts  of  his  holy  Word.  In  the  revealed  char- 
acter and  condition  of  the  devils,  we  see  disclosed  our 
own  final  destiny  if  we  live  in  the  indulgence  of  our 
natural  inclinations,  and  do  not  deny  self,  take  up  our 
cross  and  follow  the  Lord.  Thus  the  New  doctrine  con- 
strains the  believer,  through  fear  of  all  that  is  loathsome 
in  the  character  and  mournful  in  the  condition  of  devils, 
to  shun  the  paths  which  they  have  trod,  to  curb  the  pro- 
pensities which  they  indulged,  to  seek  "  the  way,  the 
truth,  and  the  life  "  which  they  ignored  and  forsook. 

Yes.  Angels  and  devils  once  were  men.  And  angels 
or  devils  we,  too,  shall  become.  So  teaches  the  New 
doctrine.  And  it  is  for  each  individual  to  choose  which 
it  shall  be.  A  question  of  deep  solemnity  and  supreme 
moment !  How  carefully  should  it  be  weighed  !  How 
watchful  should  such  consideration  make  us  over  our 
5* 


54 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


hearts  and  lives — our  disijositions,  motives  and  cherished 
purposes ! 

Considered,  therefore,  as  to  its  influence  on  the  be- 
liever's life  and  character — viewed  as  to  its  obvious  prac- 
tical tendency — which  of  these  doctrines  appears  most 
worthy  of  acceptation,  the  Old  or  the  New  ?  Which  has 
the  signature  of  infinite  Wisdom  and  Love  most  legibly 
impressed  upon  it  ?  Which  appears  most  in  harmony 
with  the  Divine  character  and  attributes  as  revealed  in 
nature  and  the  written  Word  ?  Which  looks  most  like 
heaven-descended  truth,  and  which  most  like  the  vain 
imaginings  of  men  ?  Which  is  calculated  to  exert  the 
most  salutary  influence  on  the  soul  of  the  believer  ?  The 
reader  needs  not  our  answer  to  these  questions.  He  can 
answer  them  for  himself 


EW  terms  are  of  more  frequent  occurrence  in  the 


A  Gospels,  than  heaven  and  tJic  kingdom  of  heaven. 
And  precisely  what  they  mean,  would  seem,  therefore, 
to  be  a  matter  of  some  practical  importance  to  every 
believer  of  the  Gospels.  What  is  heaven,  viewed  as  to 
its  essential  nature  ?  Dr.  E.  H.  Sears  asks  this  question 
near  the  commencement  of  his  Foregleanis  of  Immor- 
tality;  and  immediately  adds : 

"We  know  of  no  subject  so  practical  as  this.  The 
whole  business  of  the  present  life,  with  all  its  discipline 


IV. 


THE  ESSENTIAL  NA  TURE  OF  HEA  VEN. 


THE  ESSENTIAL  NATURE  OF  HEAVEN. 


55 


of  labor,  sorrow  and  joy,  is  to  prepare  and  ripen  us  for 
heaven  ;  and  if  it  shall  not  do  this,  life  will  be  a  miser- 
able failure.  But  how  shall  we  prepare  for  it,  unless  we 
know  what  we  are  to  prepare  for?  How  can  we  travel, 
unless  we  know  the  point  of  the  compass  towards  which 
we  are  steering  ?  " 

The  Christian  Scriptures  are  commonly  regarded  as  a 
revelation  from  God.  They  are  called,  and  are  believed 
to  be,  the  Word  of  God.  And  for  what  end  was  this 
revelation  given  ?  Was  it  not,  primarily,  that  men 
might  be  conducted  to  heaven? — might  become  happy 
denizens  of  the  kingdom  of  heaveOj  and  thus  realize  the 
end  for  which  they  were  created  ?  If  this  be  so, — if  the 
attainment  of  heaven  be  a  matter  of  supreme  moment, 
the  very  end  for  which  the  Lord  created  us,  and  would 
therefore  have  us  strive  for  unceasingly ; — the  end  for 
which  He  came  into  the  world,  taught,  suffered,  died, 
rose  from  the  sepulchre,  and  ascended  to  the  F'ather ; — 
the  end  for  which  the  church,  the  ministry,  the  institu- 
tions and  ordinances  of  the  Gospel  were  established ; — 
the  end  for  which  Christians  erect  houses  of  worship, 
and  assemble  there  to  hear  preaching,  unite  in  prayer 
and  in  songs  of  thanksgiving  and  praise; — if  heaven, 
we  say,  be  the  great  end  of  all  this  stupendous  machin- 
ery and  these  sublime  events,  then  a  clear  understand- 
ing and  a  well-grounded  belief  of  what  heaven  is  and 
where  it  is,  would  seem  to  be  matters  of  supreme  im- 
portance. 

Christians  have  hitherto  believed  and  taught  that 
heaven  is  a  place  into  which  a  person  may  be  admitted 
by  an  act  of  immediate  Divine  mercy.   Going  to  heaven, 


56 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


therefore  (if  this  old  and  once  popular  view  be  accepted) 
would  mean  simply  to  enter  the  place  called  heaven, 
as  a  man  might  go  to  a  foreign  country,  or  walk  into 
a  cathedral  or  a  king's  palace.  And  if  entrance  into 
heaven  be  from  immediate  mercy,  and  those  who  enter 
are  admitted  to  its  blissful  enjoyments,  why  are  not  all 
admitted,  whatever  be  their  character?  For  God  must 
desire  the  happiness  of  all,  since  He  is  a  Being  of  infi- 
nite love.  If,  therefore,  going  to  heaven  means  simply 
going  to  a  place  called  heaven,  and  if  people  are  admit- 
ted by  an  act  of  immediate  mercy,  then  it  is  difficult  to 
understand  why  everybody  should  not  go  there, — unless 
one  accepts  the  old  Calvinistic  dogma  of  unconditional 
election,  and  believes  that  it  is  God's  eternal  purpose 
and  desire  that  some  of  his  intelligent  creatures  should 
be  forever  excluded  from  the  abodes  of  bliss. 

Now,  contrary  to  the  old  and  commonly  received 
doctrine,  Swedenborg  teaches  that  heaven  is  not  a 
place,  but  a  certain  state  of  the  soul — a  state  of  love  to 
the  Lord  and  the  neighbor,  which  is  one  of  spiritual 
likeness  to  our  Maker.  It  cannot  therefore  be  located 
in  any  region  of  space.  Being  purely  spiritual  and 
within  men,  it  exists  wherever  human  spirits  exist  that 
are  in  a  heavenly  state — and  nowhere  else.  To  cite  the 
seer's  own  words  ; 

"  It  is  to  be  observed  that  heaven  is  not  in  any  cer- 
tain or  determinate  place,  thus  not  on  high  according  to 
the  vulgar  opinion,  but  it  is  where  the  Divine  is;  that  is, 
with  every  one  and  in  every  one  who  is  in  charity  and 
faith,  for  charity  and  faith  are  heaven  because  they  are 
from  the  Divine." — A.  C.  u,  8931. 


THE  ESSENTIAL  NA  TURE  OE  HE  A  VEN. 


57 


And  speaking  of  discoursing  with  the  angels  on  one 
occasion  "  when  the  interior  heaven  was  opened  to 
him,"  or  in  other  words,  when  he  was  brought  into  a 
state  similar  to  that  of  the  angels  by  the  opening  of  the 
interiors  of  his  own  soul,  he  says  : 

"  Let  it  be  remarked  that,  although  I  was  in  heaven, 
still  I  was  not  out  of  myself  but  in  the  body,  for  heaven 
is  in  man  in  whatever  place ;  and  so,  whenever  it 
pleases  the  Lord,  a  man  may  be  in  heaven  and  yet  not 
be  withdrawn  from  the  body." — A.  C.  n.  3884. 

"  The  love  and  wisdom  in  which  the  angels  are  and 
which  constitute  heaven,  are  not  theirs  but  from  the 
Lord,  and  are  indeed  the  Lord  in  them.  .  .  .  The  an- 
gels themselves  confess  that  they  live  from  the  Lord  ; 
and  from  this  it  is  evident  that  heaven  is  conjunction 
with  the  Lord." — D.  C.  n.  28. 

"  It  can  in  no  case  be  said  that  heaven  is  without  one, 
but  that  it  is  within  him  ;  for  every  angel  receives  the 
heaven  which  is  without  him  according  to  the  heaven 
that  is  within  him.  This  plainly  shows  how  much  he 
is  deceived,  who  believes  that  to  go  to  heaven  is  merely 
to  be  elevated  among  the  angels,  without  regard  to  the 
quality  of  one's  interior  life  ;  thus  that  heaven  may  be 
given  to  every  one  from  immediate  mercy;  when  yet, 
unless  heaven  is  within  a  person,  nothing  of  tlie  heaven 
without  him  flosvs-in  or  is  received." — H.  H.  n.  54; 
also  400,  518,  525. 

And  throughout  his  voluminous  works  the  same  doc- 
trine is  everywhere  taught :  Which  is,  that  heaven  is 
within  men,  and  is  to  be  thought  of  as  a  certain  quality 
of  life  or  condition  of  the  soul — as  an  internal  state,  and 
not  as  an  external  place.    It  is  a  state  of  spiritual  near- 


58 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


ness  to,  or  conjunction  with,  the  Lord;  and  "conjunc- 
tion with  the  Lord,"  we  arc  repeatedly  told,  "  is  effected 
by  means  of  the  truths  of  the  Word,  and  a  life  accord- 
ing to  them."   (A.  R.  n.  883.) 

Every  individual  has  some  ruling  love — a  love  that 
continually  acts  as  an  impelling  force  within  him,  even 
without  his  being  conscious  of  its  presence.  This  love 
is  his  life.  It  shapes  his  thoughts  and  words,  and  di- 
rects all  his  activities.  The  quality  of  his  life,  therefore, 
is  that  of  his  ruling  love.  Oftentimes  this  love  lies 
deeply  concealed,  and  does  not  reveal  itself  to  others 
here  on  earth.  But  in  the  Hereafter  all  disguises  are 
thrown  off,  and  the  interiors  are  laid  open ;  and  what- 
ever had  been  assumed  for  the  sake  of  appearance  or 
credit  among  men,  is  rejected,  and  the  ruling  love  is 
made  manifest  by  being  acted  out.  The  individual  then 
becomes  the  very  image  of  his  love — goes  where  his 
love  leads  him,  does  what  his  love  prompts,  seeks  what 
his  love  craves,  and  is  just  what  his  love  is,  good  or  bad, 
according  to  its  quality.  If  heaven,  therefore,  be  a  cer- 
tain quality  of  life,  then  as  surely  as  a  man  preserves 
his  identity  in  the  Hereafter,  or  carries  his  own  life  (and 
nothing  else)  with  him  into  the  other  world,  so  surely 
must  he  carry  his  heaven  with  him  if  he  hopes  for.  an 
abode  among  the  blessed. 

But  Swedenborg  not  only  teaches  that  heaven  is  a 
state,  but  he  has  clearly  revealed  the  nature  of  that 
state,  or  the  kind  of  life  that  constitutes  heaven.  He 
tells  us  that  love  of  the  Lord  and  the  neighbor  is  the 
ruling  love  of  all  the  angels,  and  that  this  love  flows 
into  their  hearts  from  the  Lord,  and  is  similar,  therefore, 


THE  ESSEXTIAL  NATURE  OF  HEAVE M. 


59 


to  the  love  that  He  feels  and  exercises  toward  all  his 
creatures.  It  is  the  Lord's  own  influent  life  operating 
within  them,  and  leading  them  to  love  what  He  loves, 
and  to  delight  in  doing  what  He  loves  to  have  them  do. 
It  is  the  Divine  Love  received  by  the  angels  so  as  to 
become  in  them  love  of  the  Lord  and  of  each  other. 
Hence  all  in  heaven  are  said  to  dwell  in  the  Lord  and 
the  Lord  in  them  ;  for  they  all  abide  in  his  love,  and 
his  love  abides  in  them.  Thus  they  are  images  and 
likenesses  of  the  Lord,  being  conjoined  to  Him  by  love. 
And  we  may  see  from  this  why  heaven  is  said  to  be  a 
state  of  conjunction  with  the  Lord;  and  what  is  meant 
by  the  Lord's  own  words  to  his  disciples  :  "  Abide  in 
me  and  I  in  you."  "  He  that  abideth  in  me  and  I  in 
him,  the  same  bringeth  forth  much  fruit."  "  If  ye  keep 
my  commandments,  ye  shall  abide  in  my  love."  (John 
XV.  4,  5,  lO.)  And  the  beloved  apostle  says:  "God  is 
love ;  and  he  that  dwelleth  in  love,  dwelleth  in  God  and 
God  in  him."    (i  John  iv.  i6.) 

Love  of  the  Lord,  then,  is  the  supreme  love  of  all  in 
heaven.  But  to  love  the  Lord  supremely,  is  not  to  love 
Him  as  a  person,  but  it  is  to  love  the  divine  things  which 
proceed  from  Him — innocence,  justice,  sincerity,  charity 
— all  the  Christian  graces  ;  and  these  are  really  loved 
only  by  those  who  practise  them  as  religious  duties. 
Accordingly,  Swedenborg  says : 

"To  love  the  Lord  is  not  to  love  his  person,  but  to 
love  those  things  that  proceed  from  Him,  for  these  are 
the  Lord  with  man.  Thus  it  is  to  love  what  is  itself  sin- 
cere, what  is  itself  right,  what  is  itself  just;  and  since 
these  things  are  the  Lord,  therefore  in  proportion  as  a 


6o 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


man  loves  them  and  acts  from  them,  he  loves  and  acts 
from  the  Lord  ;  and  the  Lord  removes  from  him  things 
insincere  and  unjust,  even  as  to  the  very  intentions  and 
will." — A.  E.  n.  973. 

Again : 

"  By  loving  the  Lord  is  not  meant  to  love  Him  as  a 
person  ;  for  by  this  love  alone  man  is  not  conjoined  with 
heaven,  but  by  a  love  of  the  divine  good  and  truth  which 
are  the  Lord  in  heaven  ;  and  these  two  are  not  loved  by 
knowing,  thinking,  understanding,  and  speaking  them, 
but  by  willing  and  doing  them  because  they  are  com- 
manded by  the  Lord,  and  therefore  are  of  use.  Nothing 
is  full  until  it  is  done,  and  what  is  done  is  the  end  for  the 
sake  of  which  the  love  is  cherished." — Ibid.  n.  1099. 

We  thus  see  what  is  meant  by  loving  the  Lord  su- 
premely, and  how  entirely  this  teaching,  which  is  so  often 
repeated  by  Swedenborg,  agrees  with  the  Lord's  own. 
For  He  says  :  "  He  that  hath  my  commandments  and 
keepcth  them,  he  it  is  that  loveth  me."  (John  xiv.  21.) 
"  Ye  are  my  friends  if  ye  do  whatsoever  I  command  you." 
(Ibid.  XV.  14.)  "This  is  my  commandment,  that  ye  love 
one  another  as  I  have  loved  you  "  (v.  12).  And  to  love 
others  as  the  Lord  loves  us,  is  not  merely  to  refrain  from 
doing  them  evil,  but  to  intend  and  do  them  good,  and 
seek  to  promote  their  highest  welfare. 

Such  is  the  nature  of  the  love  that  dwells  in  the  bosom 
of  the  angels.  The  Lord's  own  love  constitutes  their 
breath  of  life.  In  the  atmosphere  of  this  love,  which 
seeketh  not  its  own  but  always  the  good  of  others,  they 
live  and  move  and  have  their  being.  From  it  they  think 
and  speak,  and  by  it  all  their  actions  are  prompted  and 
controlled.    It  is  the  very  essence  and  life  of  heaven. 


THE  ESSENTIAL  K ATI' RE  OF  HEAVEN:         6 1 


But  truth  of  corresponding^  purity  and  elevation  is  con- 
joined with  this  love  in  angelic  minds,  as  the  sun's  light 
is  conjoined  with  heat,  or  as  the  lungs  are  conjoined  with 
the  heart  in  our  bodies.  Therefore  the  angels  are  as 
wise  as  they  are  good.  They  act  from  love,  and  accord- 
ing to  truth  which  is  the  everlasting  law  of  love.  They 
obey  the  divine  laws  of  charity  because  they  love  to  obey 
them — because  it  is  their  supreme  delight  to  do  the  will 
of  the  Lord. 

And  the  unspeakable  bliss  of  heaven  all  flows  from 
the  love  which  the  angels  receive  and  exercise.  And 
as  we  can  form  but  a  faint  conception  of  the  purity  and 
intensity  of  their  love,  therefore  we  can  have  but  a  faint 
conception  of  their  exalted  happiness.  Swedenborg  says 
the  delights  and  blessedness  which  they  enjoy  are  beyond 
the  power  of  language  to  describe,  and  such  as  the  natural 
man  cannot  conceive  of 

"  Heaven,"  he  says,  "  is  so  full  of  delights,  that,  viewed 
in  itself,  it  is  nothing  but  delight  and  blessedness.  .  . 
The  delights  are  ineffable  and  likewise  innumerable  ;  yet 
not  one  can  be  known  or  believed  by  him  who  is  in  the 
mere  delight  of  the  body  or  flesh." — H.  H.  n.  397,  '8. 

"  Heavenly  joy,  such  as  it  is  in  its  essence,  cannot  be 
described,  because  it  is  in  the  inmosts  of  the  life  of  the 
angels.  .  .  It  is  as  if  their  interiors  were  wide  open  and 
free  to  receive  delight  and  blessedness  which  is  distrib- 
uted to  every  single  fibre,  and  so  throughout  the  whole 
frame." — Ibid.  n.  409. 

"  How  great  the  delight  of  heaven  is,  may  appear  from 
this  single  circumstance,  that  it  is  delightful  to  all  liiere 
to  communicate  their  delights  and  blessings  to  each 
other.    And  because  all  in  heaven  are  of  this  character, 
6 


62 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


it  is  obvious  how  immense  is  the  delight  of  heaven ;  for 
there  is  in  heaven  a  communication  of  all  with  each  and 
of  each  with  all.  Such  communication  flows  from  the 
two  loves  of  heaven,  which  are  love  to  the  Lord  and 
.love  toward  the  neighbor;  and  it  is  the  nature  of  these 
loves  to  communicate  their  delights.  Love  to  the  Lord 
is  of  this  nature,  because  the  Lord's  love  is  the  love  of 
communicating  all  that  He  has  to  all  his  creatures,  for 
He  wills  the  happiness  of  all ;  and  a  similar  love  is  in 
each  of  those  who  love  Him,  because  the  Lord  is  in 
them." — H.  H.  n.  399. 

Now  compare  the  Old  with  this  New  doctrine  con- 
cerning heaven,  and  note  the  contrast.  The  former 
teaches  that  heaven  is  a  place,  into  which  people  may  be 
admitted  arbitrarily — suddenly — by  an  act  of  immediate 
Divine  mercy ;  the  latter  says  it  is  a  state  of  life  into 
which  people  come  gradually,  and  only  through  volun- 
tary obedience  to  the  laws  of  that  life  revealed  in  the 
Divine  Word.  The  one  teaches  that  admission  into  it 
is  granted  as  a  reii^ard  for  certain  acts  done  or  refrained 
from  here  on  earth  ;  the  other,  that  entrance  is  effected 
through  the  normal  opening  of  the  interiors  by  religious 
obcdieJtce  to  the  God-given  laivs  of  the  soul.  The  one  pre- 
sents it  as  a  desirable  locality  to  which  the  souls  of  the 
pious  will  be  transferred  when  they  leave  the  body ;  the 
other,  as  a  certain  kind  of  life  that  each  one  must  carry 
with  him — obscured  though  it  be,  and  but  partially  de- 
veloped here  below.  In  the  light  of  the  Old  doctrine, 
therefore,  heaven  seems  to  be  an  arbitrary  gift  of  God, 
conditioned,  it  is  true,  on  the  receiver's  fliith  and  repent- 
ance; while  the  New  doctrine  reveals  an  organic  and 
necessary  connection  between  heaven  and  earth — be- 


ESSENTIAL  NATURE  OF  HEAVEN. 


63 


tween  the  emgel  and  the  man — between  the  hfe  hereafter 
and  the  hfe  here. 

Therefore,  according  to  the  New  doctrine,  gouig  to 
heaven  is  no  obscure  or  mystical  phrase,  but  one  perfectly 
intelh'gible  to  the  most  ordinary  understanding.  For  if 
heaven  is  not  a  place  but  a  state,  it  is  obvious  that  en- 
trance into  it  can  be  had  only  by  such  as  enter  into  the 
heavenly  state.  To  long  and  labor  and  strive  for  heaven, 
therefore,  is  to  long  and  labor  and  strive  for  that  state 
of  life  which  is  heaven.  And  that  state  is  one  of  love 
to  the  Lord  and  the  neighbor — the  very  opposite  of 
man's  natural  or  hereditary  state,  which  is  one  of  su- 
preme self-love.  To  seek  heaven,  therefore,  is  to  seek 
the  complete  subjugation  of  our  natural  love  of  self  and 
the  world,  and  the  exaltation  or  establishment  of  the 
Lord's  own  love  and  life  in  place  of  it.  And  this  is  to 
lose  the  old  hereditary  life,  and  to  find  a  new  life  that  is 
far  higher  and  better.  "  He  that  loseth  his  life  for  my 
sake,  shall  find  it,"  saith  the  Lord. 

And  now  compare  the  two  doctrines — the  Old  and 
the  New.  Which  is  most  rational  and  which  most 
Scriptural  ?  If  this  seems  doubtful  to  any  mind,  we 
hope  in  subsequent  chapters  to  remove  such  doubt. 
Then  look  at  the  two  as  to  their  practical  tendency — 
their  obvious  influence  upon  life  and  character.  Which 
is  most  wholesome,  most  stimulating,  most  benign  and 
potent  in  its  operation  upon  the  receiver's  mind  and 
heart  ? 


64 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


V. 


CHARACTER  OF  THE  ANGELS. 
ROM  what  has  been  said  of  the  essential  nature  of 


JL  heaven,  it  is  plain  to  be  seen  what  ought  to  be  the 
general  and  particular  character  of  the  angels — what 
their  prevailing  dispositions  and  motives,  and  how  they 
ought  uniformly  to  feel  and  act.  But  Swedenborg  has 
himself  sketched  their  character  in  many  parts  of  his 
writings.  Let  us  see,  then,  whether  his  sketch  be  such 
as  ought  to  follow  by  logical  sequence  from  the  alleged 
ruling  loves  of  all  in  heaven;  and  whether  their  charac- 
ter as  portrayed  by  him,  be  in  agreement  with  the  laws 
of  love  as  revealed  in  Holy  Scripture. 

According  to  his  disclosures,  no  one  in  heaven  de- 
sires any  good  merely  for  himself;  but  it  is  the  delight 
of  everyone  there  "to  do  good  and  communicate,"  hop- 
ing for  nothing  in  return.  Their  highest  happiness 
consists  in  freely  imparting  their  joys  to  others.  He 
says : 

"  Mutual  love  which  reigns  in  heaven,  consists  in 
this :  that  each  loves  his  neighbor  more  than  himself. 
Hence  the  whole  heaven  constitutes,  as  it  were,  a  single 
man,  all  being  thus  consociated  by  mutual  love  from  the 
Lord.  Hence  it  is,  too,  that  the  felicities  of  all  are 
communicated  to  each  individual,  and  those  of  each  in- 
dividual to  all :  and  hence  the  heavenly  form  is  such, 
that  every  one  is,  as  it  were,  a  kind  of  centre,  whence 
he  is  a  centre  of  the  communications,  consequently  of 
the  felicities,  proceeding  from  all ;  which  take  place 
according  to  all  the  differences  of  that  love,  which  are 


CHARACTER  OF  THE  ANGELS. 


65 


innumerable.  And  as  they  who  are  principled  in  that 
love  perceive  the  highest  happiness  in  this  circumstance, 
that  they  are  capable  of  communicating  to  others  what 
they  receive  by  influx  themselves,  which  they  do  from 
the  heart,  the  communication  is  thus  rendered  perpetual 
and  eternal ;  in  consequence  of  which  the  happiness  of 
each  increases  in  proportion  to  the  increase  of  the 
Lord's  kingdom." — A.  C.  2057. 

"  When  an  angel  does  good  to  any  one,  he  also  com- 
municates to  him  his  own  good,  satisfaction  and  bless- 
edness, so  that  he  is  willing  to  give  everything  to  the 
other,  and  to  retain  nothing.  When  he  is  in  such  com- 
munication, good  flows-in  with  satisfaction  and  blessed- 
ness to  him  in  a  much  greater  degree  than  he  gives,  and 
this  continually  with  increase.  But  as  soon  as  the 
thought  occurs,  that  he  wills  to  communicate  what  he 
has,  to  the  intent  that  he  may  obtain  that  influx  of  satis- 
faction and  blessedness  in  himself,  the  influx  is  dissi- 
pated ;  and  still  more  so,  if  anything  presents  itself  of 
thought  concerning  recompense  from  him  to  whom  he 
communicates  his  good.  This  it  has  been  given  me  to 
know  from  much  experience.  Hence  also  it  may  be 
manifest  that  the  Lord  is  in  singulars,  for  He  is  such 
that  He  wills  to  give  Himself  to  all ;  hence  satisfaction 
and  blessedness  are  increased  with  those  who  become 
images  and  likenesses  of  Him." — Ibid.  n.  6478. 

Observe  it  is  here  said  that  "  good  flows-in  with  sat- 
isfaction and  blessedness  to  him  [who  wills  to  give 
everything  to  others],  in  a  far  greater  degree  than  he 
gives ;  and  this  with  continual  increase."  Which  agrees 
perfectly  with  these  words  of  the  Lord — spiritually  in- 
terpreted :  "  Give,  and  it  shall  be  given  unto  you ;  good 
measure,  pressed  down,  shaken  together  and  running 
over,  shall  men  give  into  your  bosom.  For  with  the 
6*  E 


66 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


same  measure  that  ye  mete  withal,  it  shall  be  measured 
to  you  again."  (Luke  vi.  38.)  But  if  an  angel  "  wills 
to  communicate  what  he  has,  to  the  intent  that  he  may 
obtain  that  influx  of  satisfaction  and  blessedness  in  him- 
self, the  influx  is  dissipated."  And  so,  in  respect  to  the 
purely  disinterestedness  of  their  love,  and  their  desire  to 
have  others  share  their  blessedness,  the  angels  resemble 
the  Lord  Himself,  whose  delight  it  is  to  impart  of  his 
own  life  and  blessedness  to  his  creatures. 

No  one  in  heaven  aspires  to  be  great  above  others. 
No  one  desires  to  have  others  honor  or  serve  him  per- 
sonally. All  are  more  desirous  of  serving  than  of  be- 
ing served.  "  In  heaven  he  is  the  greatest  of  all,  who 
fs  the  least  of  all,"  says  Swedenborg ;  '*  for  whosoever 
wills  to  be  least,  has  the  greatest  happiness,  and  conse- 
quently is  the  greatest."  Yet  "  heaven  does  not  con- 
sist in  desiring  to  be  least  with  a  view  to  being  the 
greatest,  for  in  such  desire  there  lurks  the  lust  of  pre- 
eminence ;  but  it  consists  in  this,  that  every  one  should 
from  the  heart  wish  better  to  others  than  to  himself,  and 
should  serve  others  with  a  view  to  their  happiness,  that 
is,  from  a  principle  of  love  that  has  no  regard  to  selfish 
ends."  (A.  C.  n.  452.)  And  the  Lord  says:  "  Whoso- 
ever will  be  great  among  you,  let  him  be  your  minister; 
and  whosoever  will  be  chief  among  you,  let  him  be  your 
servant ;  even  as  the  Son  of  Man  came  not  to  be  minis- 
tered unto,  but  to  minister,  and  to  give  his  life  a  ransom 
for  many."    (Matt.  xx.  26,  '7.  '8.) 

Here,  again,  wc  trace  the  resemblance  of  the  angels 
to  the  Lord — precisely  as  it  should  be,  if  they  are  filled 
and  animated  by  his  Spirit. 


CHARACTER  OF  THE  ANGELS. 


67 


Then  their  humility,  according  to  Swedcnborg,  is  no 
less  remarkable  than  their  unselfish  love.  Notwith- 
standing their  exalted  wisdom,  transcending  by  many 
degrees  that  of  the  wisest  men  on  earth,  they  are  not 
puffed  up  on  account  of  it.  They  have  no  pride  of  in- 
tellect, no  self-derived  intelligence,  no  self-righteous- 
ness. They  regard  none  of  the  goods  or  truths  they 
possess  as  their  own  ;  but  perceive  and  acknowledge 
and  love  to  acknowledge  that  they  are  all  the  Lord's, 
and  are  his  free  and  perpetual  gift  to  them. 

"  Because  the  angels  believe  this,  therefore  they  re- 
fuse all  thanks  on  account  of  the  good  they  do,  and  are 
displeased  and  recede  if  any  one  attributes  good  to 
them.  They  wonder  that  any  one  should  believe  that 
he  is  wise  and  does  good  from  himself  Good  done  for 
the  sake  of  one's  self,  they  do  not  call  good,  because  it 
is  done  from  self;  but  good  done  for  the  sake  of  good, 
this  they  call  good  from  the  Divine  ;  and  this  good, 
they  say,  is  what  makes  heaven,  because  it  is  the  Lord 
[for  He  is  within  it  as  its  inmost  principle.  A.  C.  1802, 
3951,  8480]."— H.  H.  n.  9. 

Again  : 

"  He  lives  most,  that  is,  most  wisely  and  intelligently, 
most  blessedly  and  happily,  who  is  most  confirmed  in 
the  belief  that  he  does  not  live  of  himself;  and  this  is 
the  life  of  the  angels,  especially  of  the  celestial  who  .are 
the  inmost  or  nearest  to  the  Lord.  ...  In  heaven  they 
are  the  greatest  who  are  the  least,  and  they  are  the  wis- 
est who  perceive  and  think  themselves  the  least  wise ; 
and  they  are  the  happiest  who  desire  others  to  be  most 
happy,  but  themselves  least  so.  Heaven  consists  in  de- 
siring to  be  below  all,  but  hell  in  desiring  to  be  above 
all ;  therefore  in  the  glory  of  heaven  there  is  nothing  at 
all  of  the  glory  of  this  world." — A.  C.  n.  2654. 


68 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


This  reveals  the  profound  and  beautiful  humility  of 
the  angels ;  and  in  this  consists  their  real  exaltation. 
And  there  can  be  no  spiritual  exaltation  of  a  finite  be- 
ing, without  similar  humility.  As  it  is  written :  "  For 
whosoever  exalteth  himself,  shall  be  abased ;  and  he 
that  humbleth  himself,  shall  be  exalted."  (Luke  xiv.  II.) 

The  angels  are  further  described  by  Swedenborg  as 
abounding  in  charity  or  neighborly  love.  Under  the  in- 
fluence of  this  principle,  they  seek  perpetually  to  excite 
what  is  good  and  true  in  the  minds  of  men  and  of  each 
other ;  and  they  are  ever  ready  to  overlook,  or  put  the 
best  possible  construction  on,  whatever  they  perceive  as 
evil  and  false.  They  have  no  inclination  to  spy  out 
others'  faults,  or  to  condemn  any  one  on  account  of 
them,  but  rather  to  find  what  is  good  and  true  in  every 
one. 

"They  who  are  in  charity,  scarcely  see  another's  evils, 
but  observe  all  that  is  good  and  true  in  him,  and  put  a 
favorable  interpretation  upon  what  is  evil  and  false. 
Such  are  all  the  angels  ;  and  they  have  this  disposition 
from  the  Lord  who  turns  all  evil  into  good." — A.  C.  n. 
1079. 

"They  who  are  not  in  charity,  think  only  evil  of  their 
neighbor,  and  speak  nothing  but  evil  of  him  ;  or  if  they 
say  what  is  good,  they  do  it  on  their  own  account,  or 
with  a  view  to  insinuate  themselves  into  the  favor  of 
him  whom  they  flatter  with  commendation.  Those, 
however,  who  are  in  charity,  think  and  speak  nothing 
but  what  is  good  of  their  neighbor;  and  this  not  for 
their  own  sake,  or  to  gain  the  favor  of  others,  but  from 
the  Lord  operating  in  charity.  The  former  resemble 
the  evil  spirits,  and  the  latter  the  angels  who  are  attend- 
ant on  man;  for  evil  spirits  always  excite  man's  evils 


CHARACTER  OF  THE  ANGELS. 


69 


and  falsities,  and  condemn  him ;  whereas  angels  excite 
nothing  but  goods  and  truths,  excusing  what  is  evil  and 
false.  Hence  it  is  evident,  that  such  as  are  not  in  char- 
ity are  under  the  dominion  of  evil  spirits,  by  whom  man 
has  communication  with  hell ;  and  that  such  as  are  in 
charity  are  governed  by  angels,  by  whom  he  has  com- 
munication with  heaven." — A.  C.  n.  1088. 

Such  is  the  charity  in  which,  we  are  told,  the  angels 
are.  And  is  it  not  the  very  spirit  of  the  Lord's  own 
Gospel  ?  Is  it  not  in  agreement  with  the  spirit  of  the 
texts  which  counsel  us  not  to  judge,  nor  condemn,  nor 
think  evil  of  others ;  and  not  to  be  on  the  watch  for  a 
mote  in  a  brother's  eye,  without  thinking  of  the  beam 
which  needs  first  to  be  cast  out  of  our  own  eye  ? 

Look  also  at  the  innocence  of  the  angels  as  portrayed 
by  Swedenborg.  And  this  word  as  employed  by  him, 
has  a  vastly  deeper  and  more  comprehensive  meaning 
than  is  commonly  given  to  it.  It  means  not  mere  sin- 
lessness,  or  freedom  from  wrong  in  thought  or  deed ; 
but  a  state  of  the  highest  wisdom,  such  as  only  those 
are  in  who  have  been  brought  to  see  that  their  natural 
proprium  is  altogether  evil,  and  that  whatever  good  they 
have  is  not  their  own  but  the  Lord's ;  and  whose  deep 
desire  and  purpose  it  is  to  be  led  of  the  Lord  in  all 
things,  and  who  have  no  desire  to  lead  themselves.  It 
is,  in  short,  the  very  esse  of  all  goodness,  for  it  is  the 
Lord's  own  life  in  the  soul. 

"  It  is  said  in  heaven  that  innocence  dwells  in  wis- 
dom, and  that  an  angel  has  as  much  of  wisdom  as  he 
has  of  innocence.  That  such  is  the  case,  they  confirm 
by  this,  that  those  who  are  in  a  state  of  innocence  attrib- 
ute nothing  of  good  to  themselves,  but  regard  all  their 


70 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


goods  as  gifts  received,  and  ascribe  them  to  the  Lord  ; 
that  they  wish  to  be  led  by  Hi  in,  and  not  by  them- 
selves ;  that  they  love  everything  which  is  good,  and 
are  delighted  with  everything  which  is  true,  because 
they  know  and  perceive  that  to  love  what  is  good,  thus 
to  will  and  to  do  it,  is  to  love  the  Lord ;  and  to  love 
what  is  true,  is  to  love  their  neighbor;  that  they  live 
contented  with  their  own,  whether  it  be  little  or  much, 
because  they  know  that  they  receive  as  much  as  is  prof- 
itable for  them  ;  little,  if  little  be  profitable,  and  much, 
if  much  be  profitable ;  and  that  they  do  not  themselves 
know  what  is  best  for  them,  this  being  known  only  to 
the  Lord,  whose  providence  in  all  things  contemplates 
eternal  ends.  Hence  they  are  not  anxious  about  the 
future.  They  call  solicitude  about  the  future,  care  for 
the  morrow,  which  they  say  is  grief  for  the  loss  or  non- 
reception  of  things  which  are  not  necessary  for  the  uses 
of  life.  In  their  intercourse  with  others  they  never  act 
from  an  evil  end,  but  from  what  is  good,  just  and  sin- 
cere. To  act  from  an  evil  end,  they  call  cunning,  which 
they  shun  as  the  poison  of  a  serpent,  since  it  is  alto- 
gether contrary  to  innocence.  Because  they  love  noth- 
ing more  than  to  be  led  of  the  Lord,  and  acknowledge 
their  indebtedness  to  Him  for  everything  they  receive, 
therefore  they  are  removed  from  their  proprium  ;  and 
in  the  degree  that  they  are  removed  from  their  pro- 
prium, in  the  same  degree  the  Lord  flows-in.  .  .  .  Such 
is  the  innocence  which  is  called  the  innocence  of  wis- 
dom."—H.  H.  n.  278. 

We  further  learn  from  this  new  revelation,  that  the 
angels  love  even  the  worst  of  men,  and  constantly  en- 
deavor to  do  them  all  the  good  they  can.  They  feel 
only  tenderest  love  and  compassion  for  us,  even  in  our 
states  of  deepest  guilt  and  sin.  However  we  may  re- 
sist their  hallowing  influences,  and  close  our  hearts 


CHARACTER  OF  THE  ANGELS. 


71 


against  the  precious  things  they  long  to  communicate, 
they  never  leave  us,  nor  relax  their  efforts  to  do  us 
good.  They  continually  endeavor  to  withdraw  and 
withhold  us  from  evil — to  rescue  our  souls  from  the  do- 
minion of  infernal  spirits.  They  do  this,  because  the 
Lord's  own  love  is  in  them  and  in  active  operation;  and 
it  is  the  nature  of  this  love  to  do  good  to  all,  and  to 
seek  the  salvation  and  happiness  of  all.  The  angels  are, 
therefore,  in  the  same  ends  as  the  Lord  Himself,  and 
desire  the  very  things  that  He  desires.  Hence  they  are 
called  his  ministers  or  "  ministering  spirits."  (Heb.  i.  14. 
See  also  Ps.  ciii.  21  :  civ.  4.)  They  are  images  and  like- 
nesses of  Himself  In  them  is  fulfilled  the  great  law  of 
love  delivered  in  these  divine  words  :  "  Love  your  ene- 
mies; bless  them  that  curse  you  ;  do  good  to  them  that 
hate  you  ;  and  pray  for  them  that  despitefully  use  you 
and  persecute  you  ;  that  ye  may  be  the  children  of  your 
Father  which  is  in  heaven ;  for  He  maketh  his  sun  to 
rise  on  the  evil  and  on  the  good,  and  sendeth  rain  on 
the  just  and  on  the  unjust. — Be  ye,  therefore,  perfect, 
even  as  your  Father  which  is  in  heaven  is  perfect." 
(Matt.  V.  44-48.) 

Such  is  a  brief  sketch  of  the  character  of  the  heavenly 
inhabitants,  as  portrayed  by  Swedenborg.  And  is  it 
not  precisely  such  as  might  be  expected,  if  heaven  in  its 
e.ssential  nature  be  what  he  says  it  is  ?  Is  not  every 
trait  as  here  delineated,  such  as  might  be  inferred  from 
the  alleged  ruling  loves  of  heaven? — such  as  follows  by 
strict  logical  sequence  from  love  to  the  Lord  and  love 
to  the  neighbor,  v/hen  these  loves  rule  supreme  in  the 
soul  ? 


72 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


VI. 


VERDICT  OF  REASON  AND  EXPERIENCE. 


OW  is  this  doctrine  respecting  heaven,  as  thus  far 


■i-  ^  opened,  true  ?  Let  us  see, — and  we  will  first  ex- 
amine it  in  the  light  of  reason,  common  observation  and 
human  experience. 

However  people's  ideas  of  heaven  may  differ  in  other 
respects,  they  all  agree  in  this  :  that  whoever  goes  there, 
will  find  great  and  enduring  happiness.  The  Bible 
clearly  warrants  this  belief.  But  in  what  does  human 
happiness  consist?  What  do  reason,  observation  and 
experience  teach  on  this  point?  Certainly  that  it  does 
not  consist  in  any  outward  appliances  of  which  time  and 
space  are  predicable.  It  is  not  those  who  are  most 
comfortably  lodged  and  luxuriously  fed  and  royally  ap- 
parelled, who  are  the  happiest.  By  no  means.  True 
and  enduring  happiness  is  something  which  the  wealth 
of  the  Indies  cannot  purchase.  For  it  does  not  depend 
on  the  character  or  condition  of  things  without,  but  on 
the  character  and  condition  of  the  world  within  us — on 
the  state  of  the  soul.  Locate  people  as  you  may,  place 
them  in  the  midst  of  the  loveliest  surroundings,  supply 
them  with  all  the  elegances,  comforts  and  luxuries  that 
wealth  can  furnish — houses,  furniture,  equipage,  books, 
friends,  companions,  all  that  the  natural  man  craves — 
and  you  will  not  thereby  make  them  happy.  They 
may  appear  and  even  esteem  themselves  happy  for  a 
time;  but  it  is  only  an  external  delight,  a  merely  natu- 
ral gratification  which  they  experience,  and  which  from 


VERDICT  OF  REASOX  AND  EXPERIENCE.  73 


its  very  nature  must  soon  pass  away.  Every  person  of 
much  reflection  or  self-intuition,  knows  that 

"  The  mind  is  its  own  place,  and  in  itself 
Can  make  a  heaven  of  hell,  a  hell  of  heaven." 

The  soul  very  soon  stamps  its  own  complexion  on  a 
man's  entire  surroundings.  The  outer  soon  acquires  the 
color  and  the  key  of  our  inner  world  ;  becomes  beauti- 
ful and  harmonious  if  there  be  beauty  and  harmony 
within,  but  ugly  and  discordant  if  deformity  and  discord 
are  in  the  soul.    As  one  of  our  own  poets  sings  : 

"  It  is  the  soul's  prerogative,  its  fate 
To  shape  the  outward  to  its  own  estate  ; 
If  right  itself,  then  all  around  is  well ; 
If  wrong,  it  makes  of  all  without  a  hell." 

No.  It  is  in  vain  that  men  seek,  with  any  hope  of 
finding,  true  happiness  from  without — from  any  new  po- 
litical, social,  economic  or  industrial  arrangements.  We 
do  not  mean  to  say  that  some  external  arrangements 
may  not  be  more  useful  than  others  in  promoting  inter- 
nal and  spiritual  culture.  But  real  happiness  can  never 
come  from  without,  but  only  from  within — from  a  re- 
generate and  well-ordered  state  of  the  soul,  yea,  from 
the  Lord's  own  presence  therein.  It  is  the  normal  re- 
sult of  obedience  to  the  laws  of  our  spiritual  life.  Let 
these  laws  be  faithfully  obeyed,  and  the  soul  is  thereby 
opened  to  an  influx  of  the  Divine  life,  and  the  man  is 
happy  under  almost  any  circumstances.  But  let  them 
be  violated,  and  no  amount  of  purple  and  fine  linen  and 
sumptuous  fare  can  ward  off  the  evil  consequences  of 
such  violation.  The  truly  good  man,  however  bereft  of 
7 


74 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


comforts  and  luxuries,  is  never  really  miserable ;  nor  is 
the  bad  man,  though  crowned  with  abundant  earthly 
treasures,  ever  truly  happy.  For  true  happiness  never 
comes  from  without,  but  depends  wholly  on  the  condi- 
tion of  the  soul.  How  clearly  did  Milton  see  this,  when 
he  sang  in  strains  no  less  true  than  beautiful : 

"  He  that  hath  light  within  his  own  clear  breast, 
May  sit  in  the  centre  and  enjoy  bright  day; 
But  he  that  hides  a  dark  soul  and  foul  thoughts. 
Benighted  walks  under  the  mid-day  sun. 
Himself  is  his  own  dungeon." 

And  another  of  England's  poets  says : 

"  Know  then  this  truth  (enough  for  man  to  know), 
Virtue  alone  is  happiness  below. 
Condition,  ciicumstance,  is  not  the  thing, — 
Bliss  is  the  same  in  subject  and  in  king." 

And  the  same  thing  has  been  seen,  if  not  sung,  by  every 
one  who  has  received  from  the  Creator  a  single  spark 
of  poetic  inspiration. 

If,  then,  all  who  go  to  heaven  are  to  be  happy  there, 
and  if  true  happiness  on  earth  comes  only  from  a  regen- 
erate and  well-ordered  state  of  the  soul,  the  conclusion 
is  forced  upon  us  that  heaven  is  not  a  place  into  which 
people  may  be  admitted  from  immediate  mercy,  but  a 
certain  state  of  life.  And  it  may  be  further  inferred  that 
it  is  a  siinilar  state  (it  may  be  far  more  exalted  and  per- 
fect) to  that  which  is  known  to  be  attended  with  the 
highest  happiness  on  earth.  And  what  is  that  state  ? 
Let  reason,  observation  and  experience  testify. 

Consider  that  God  is  Law  and  Order  itself  He  gov- 
erns the  material  universe  by  fixed  and  determinate  laws. 


VERDICT  OF  REASON  AND  EXPERIENCE.  75 


In  every  form  and  condition  of  matter,  laws  pervade  and 
preside  over  it.  We  call  them  laws  of  matter,  but  they 
are  really  the  Law^giver's  own  vital  presence  in  matter, 
— laws  to  which  He  continually  subjects  matter.  And 
every  infraction  of  these  laws,  we  know,  is  attended  with 
more  or  less  suffering.  Our  corporeal  frame  has  its  laws 
— beneficent  and  God-ordained ;  and  bodily  health  and 
comfort  can  be  enjoyed  only  on  condition  of  the  strict 
observance  of  these  laws.  They  cannot  be  transgressed 
with  impunity.  If  we  overwork  our  bodies  or  our  brains, 
if  we  indulge  our  appetites  to  excess,  if  we  take  poison 
(be  it  food  or  drink)  into  the  system,  if  we  breathe  a 
vitiated  atmosphere  or  neglect  all  bodily  exercise  for  a 
considerable  time,  we  must  suffer  the  penalty  of  every 
such  infraction  of  the  body's  laws, — a  penalty  always 
proportioned  to  the  extent  of  the  violation. 

Now,  mind  has  its  laws  as  well  as  matter.  There  are 
laws  of  the  soul  as  well  as  of  the  body.  And  it  is  just 
as  essential  to  the  health  of  the  soul — as  essential,  there- 
fore, to  human  happiness — that  these  spiritual  laws  be 
obeyed,  as  it  is  to  the  body's  health  and  comfort  that 
we  obey  the  laws  of  our  physical  being.  All  these  laws 
are  divine — are  God's  laws ;  and  none  of  them  can  be 
transgressed  with  impunity.  If  the  soul's  laws,  there- 
fore, be  violated,  the  soul  will  be  sick  and  suffer,  and  un- 
happiness  will  ensue  ;  as  certainly  as  bodily  sickness  and 
suffering  follow  the  transgression  of  the  body's  laws. 

But  where  and  what  are  the  laws  of  the  soul,  on  the 
observance  of  which  human  happiness  is  conditioned? 
They  are  all  contained  in  the  Word  of  the  Lord.  The 
Word  is,  indeed,  the  Book  of  Life,  for  herein  are  recorded 


76 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


all  the  laws  of  our  spiritual  life.  Yet  some  of  these  laws 
may  be  rationally  inferred.  They  may  be  learned  from 
experience  and  observation.  Since  they  are  God's  laws, 
they  must  all  be  laws  of  love,  and  therefore  good  ;  and 
if  carefully  obeyed,  they  must  produce  the  greatest  pos- 
sible amount  of  happiness.  Obedience  to  divine  laws 
can  never  be  attended  with  unhappiness.  This  is  ever 
the  result  of  disobedience. 

Now  every  one  knows  that  people  are  not  happy  who 
are  governed  by  an  inordinate  self-love,  and  who  seek 
their  own  good  exclusively,  regardless  of  the  good  of 
their  neighbor.  Every  one  who  has  not  wholly  quenched 
the  Divine  Spirit  within  him,  feels  that,  in  obeying  at  all 
times  the  promptings  of  self-interest — living  and  acting 
with  a  supreme  and  exclusive  regard  to  himself — he  is 
not  obeying  the  will  of  God,  nor  that  law  of  life  which 
God  has  ordained.  He  is  inwardly  conscious  of  living 
and  acting  otherwise  than  the  Heavenly  Father  would 
have  him.  Nor  is  he  happy — far  from  it — in  the  per- 
petual indulgence  of  his  love  of  self.  He  is  restless  and 
sour  and  hard  and  morose.  And  not  only  does  this  love 
make  the  soul  of  its  possessor  unhappy,  but  its  indul- 
gence is  attended  with  unhappiness  to  others.  Its  ten- 
dency is  altogether  evil.  Let  all  men  act  in  obedience 
to  its  promptings,  and  universal  hatred,  anarchy,  war 
and  wretchedness  would  be  the  inevitable  consequence. 

Nor  are  those  persons  happy  who  are  in  the  lust  of 
dominion — who  seek  to  exalt  themselves  above  others 
and  to  rule  over  others  ;  nor  those  who  pride  themselves 
on  their  attainments,  and  desire  to  be  esteemed  and 
honored  above  others  on  account  of  them  ;  nor  those  who 


VERDICT  OF  REASON  AND  EXPERIENCE.  77 


cherish  hatred  and  revenge,  who  indulge  in  bitter  and 
vindictive  feelings  toward  enemies.  All  such  disposi- 
tions and  feelings  are  the  legitimate  offspring  of  self-love, 
and  utterly  opposed  to  the  laws  of  life  which  God  has 
revealed  for  the  government  of  human  spirits.  And 
from  the  bosoms  in  which  they  dwell,  they  drive  away 
all  genuine  peace,  and  induce  a  restless  fever-heat  which 
burns  and  burns  to  the  core  of  life — a  tormenting  fire  of 
hell. 

Verj'  different  is  the  case  with  those  who  obey  the 
laws  of  neighborly  love ;  whose  supreme  desire  is  to 
render  themselves  useful — to  do  all  the  good  they  can 
in  the  world;  who  love,  and  seek  to  do  good  to,  even 
their  enemies  ;  who  have  no  desire  to  rule  over  but  only 
to  serve  others  ;  who  care  little  for  mere  earthly  rewards 
— the  honors  or  praises  of  men ;  who  claim  no  merit  on 
account  of  what  they  know  or  do,  but  in  their  hearts 
acknowledge  their  utter  dependence  on  the  Lord,  and 
ascribe  all  the  honor  and  glory  to  Him.  These  are  the 
truly  great,  wise  and  noble  ones  of  earth,  however  ob- 
scure their  names  or  humble  their  abode.  Viewed  in 
the  light  of  that  truth  by  which  all  souls  are  to  be  finally 
judged,  they  shine  like  stars  even  in  this  world.  They 
are  the  golden  links  in  God's  great  chain  of  love,  con- 
necting men  on  earth  with  the  angels  in  heaven.  Men 
call  them  angels — for  some  perception  of  the  quality  of 
angelic  life  is  vouchsafed  to  many  here  on  earth. 

And  such  persons,  too,  are  the  only  ones  who  know 
what  true  and  substantial  happiness  is.  They  are  happy 
because  they  obey  the  highest  laws — laws  divinely  or- 
dained and  revealed  for  the  government  of  human  be- 
7* 


78 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


ings.  And  the  nearer  men  approach  to  this  state,  or  to 
the  quahty  of  angelic  Hfe  as  disclosed  by  Swedenborg — 
the  more  faithfully  they  obey  all  the  revealed  laws  of  the 
higher  or  regenerate  life — the  more  pure,  serene  and  ex- 
alted is  their  happiness.  This  has  been  the  universal 
experience  of  mankind  in  all  ages. 

But  Swedenborg  does  not  teach  that  the  happiness  of 
heaven  in  all  its  fullness,  can  ever  be  enjoyed  on  earth. 
We  must  lay  aside  the  material  body  before  we  can  arrive 
at  the  perfection  of  that  state  denoted  by  the  term  heaven. 
The  blessedness  experienced  here  on  earth  resulting  from 
strict  conformity  to  the  highest  laws,  or  from  the  highest 
spiritual  state  to  which  we  are  capable  of  attaining  here, 
is  obscure  and  meagre  when  compared  with  that  which 
regenerate  souls  will  enjoy  in  the  world  beyond.  Ac- 
cordingly Swedenborg  says : 

"  The  man  who  is  in  the  loves  of  self  and  the  world, 
so  long  as  he  lives  in  the  body  feels  delight  from  these 
loves,  and  also  in  each  of  the  pleasures  to  which  they 
give  birth.  But  the  man  who  is  in  love  to  God  and  the 
neighbor,  does  not,  so  long  as  he  lives  in  the  body,  feel 
a  manifest  delight  from  these  loves  and  from  the  good 
affections  thence  derived,  but  only  a  blessedness  almost 
imperceptible,  because  it  is  stored  up  in  his  interiors,  and 
veiled  by  the  exteriors  which  are  of  the  body,  and  blunted 
by  worldly  cares. 

"  But  the  states  are  entirely  changed  after  death.  The 
delights  of  the  love  of  self  and  the  world  are  then  turned 
into  painful  and  horrible  sensations,  which  are  called 
hell-fire,  and  occasionally  into  things  defiled  and  filthy 
corresponding  to  their  unclean  pleasures  which — strange 
to  say — are  then  delightful  to  them.  But  the  obscure 
delight  and  almost  imperceptible  blessedness  which  had 


VERDICT  OF  REASON  AND  EXPERIENCE.  79 


been  enjoyed  by  those  in  the  world  who  were  in  love  to 
God  and  in  love  toward  the  neighbor,  are  then  turned 
into  the  delight  of  heaven,  which  becomes  perceptible 
and  sensible  in  all  manner  of  ways ;  for  that  blessedness 
which  lay  stored  up  and  hidden  in  their  interiors  when 
they  lived  in  the  world,  is  then  revealed  and  brought 
forth  into  manifest  sensation,  because  they  are  then  in 
the  spirit,  and  that  was  the  delight  of  their  spirit." — H. 
H.  n.  401. 

"All  goods  increase  immensely  in  the  other  life.  But 
man's  life  while  in  the  body  is  such  that  he  cannot  go 
beyond  loving  his  neighbor  as  himself,  because  he  is  in 
corporeal  principles;  but  when  these  are  removed  the 
love  becomes  more  pure,  and  at  length  angelic,  which 
is  to  love  the  neighbor  more  than  one's  self  For  in 
heaven  it  is  delightful  to  do  good  to  another,  and  not 
delightful  to  do  good  to  themselves  unless  in  order  that 
the  good  may  become  another's,  thus  for  the  sake  of 
another  ;  and  this  is  to  love  the  neighbor  more  than 
themselves." — Ibid.  n.  406. 

Heaven,  then,  according  to  the  New  Christianity,  is 
essentially  a  state  of  life.  And  if  happiness  must  enter 
into  our  idea  of  it,  as  an  essential  element,  then  it  can 
be  no  other  than  the  very  state  that  Swedenborg  says  it 
is  ;  and  the  angels,  if  human  and  subject  to  the  laws  or- 
dained for  the  government  of  human  beings,  must  be 
of  precisely  the  character  that  he  has  so  often  and  so 
vividly  portrayed.  The  nature  of  the  heavenly  life  can 
be  none  other  than  that  he  describes.  This  is  the  clear 
and  undeniable  testimony  of  enlightened  reason,  com- 
mon observation,  and  all  human  experience.  To  sup- 
pose the  character  of  the  angels  to  be  at  all  different 
from  that  revealed  through  him — to  suppose  them  pos- 


8o 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


sessed  of  different  dispositions  and  feelings,  to  be  actu- 
ated by  different  motives,  to  desire  and  seek  different 
ends,  would  be  to  suppose  them  not  thoroughly  imbued 
with  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel,  not  subject  to  the  laws  of 
the  higher  life  as  revealed  in  the  Divine  Word,  not  im- 
ages and  likenesses  of  the  Lord,  not  children  of  the 
Heavenly  Father,  and  therefore  not  his  "ministering 
spirits  sent  forth  to  minister  for  them  who  shall  be  heirs 
of  salvation." 

But  what  is  the  testimony  of  Holy  Scripture  on  the 
subject?  We  have  incidentally  introduced  some  of  it 
already  ;  but  we  will  consider  this  question  more  in  de- 
tail, and  answer  it  more  fully,  in  the  next  chapter. 


VII. 

TESTIMONY  OF  SCRIPTURE. 

THE  next  question  to  be  considered  is:  Does  this 
doctrine  concerning  the  essential  nature  of  heaven 
and  the  character  of  the  angels  as  delineated  by  Swe- 
denborg,  agree  with  the  teachings  of  the  Bible?  If  not, 
devout  and  reverent  souls  will  be  slow,  as  they  ought, 
about  accepting  it.  But  right  here,  is  the  place  to  say, 
that  human  rationality  is  as  truly  the  gift  of  God  as  the 
Sacred  Scripture.  And  before  accepting  such  an  inter- 
pretation of  Scripture  as  would  make  the  Bible  contra- 
dict the  clear  intuitions  of  reason  and  all  human  experi- 
ence, we  ought  carefully  to  consider  whether  it  does  not 


TESTIMONY  OF  SCRIPTURE. 


8l 


admit  of  some  other  interpretation  more  accordant  with 
the  testimony  of  these  two  witnesses.  All  who  desire 
that  the  credit  and  authority  of  the  Bible  be  maintained, 
must  desire  to  see  its  language  interpreted  in  such  a 
manner  (if  this  can  be  fairly  done)  as  to  make  its  teach- 
ings tally  with  the  intuitions  of  our  highest  reason. 
Those  who  give  to  Scripture  such  an  interpretation  as 
requires  (for  its  acceptance)  the  annihilation  of  reason 
or  the  repudiation  of  the  lessons  of  experience,  know 
not  what  they  do.  For  in  this  way  they  are  weakening 
the  faith  of  thoughtful  people  in  the  divinity  of  the 
Scriptures,  and  engendering  a  skepticism  none  the  less 
real  and  obstinate  for  being  carefully  concealed. 

It  is  not  the  least  among  the  merits  of  the  New  Chris- 
tian Dispensation,  that,  while  firmly  based  upon  the  in- 
spired Word,  it  is  yet  a  dispensation  of  rational  religious 
truth.  It  holds  that  the  Bible  rightly  interpreted,  will 
ever  be  found  in  complete  accord  with  the  teachings  of 
enlightened  reason,  true  science,  sound  philosophy,  hu- 
man experience  and  the  well-ascertained  laws  of  our 
mental  and  moral  constitution.  If  this  claim  be  well- 
founded,  we  ought  to  be  able  to  show  that  the  new  doc- 
trine announced  by  Swedenborg  and  affirmed  by  rea- 
son and  experience,  concerning  the  essential  nature  of 
heaven,  is  fully  sustained  by  the  teachings  of  Scripture. 
See,  then,  if  this  be  not  actually  the  case.  "  To  the  Law 
and  to  the  Testimony."  If  Swedenborg  "  speak  not  ac- 
cording to  this  Word,  it  is  because  there  is  no  light  in 
him."    (Isa.  viii.  20.) 

First,  it  is  not  to  be  denied  that  the  Bible,  interpreted 
in  its  lowest  or  strictly  literal  sense,  often  speaks  of 
F 


82 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


heaven  as  if  it  were  located  in  some  region  of  space. 
Tlie  sacred  penmen,  when  treating  of  it,  make  use  of 
such  terms  as  are  uniformly  employed  in  speaking  of 
places.  Thus  they  speak  of  going  to  heaven,  of  looking 
toivards  heaven,  of  ascending  up  into  heaven,  of  looking 
dotv'n  and  coining  doivn  from  heaven,  etc. — language 
which,  understood  in  its  strictly  literal  sense,  certainly 
favors  the  old  idea  of  heaven  as  a  place.  Besides,  it  is 
sometimes  called  a  place  ;  as  where  our  Lord,  speaking 
of  the  "  Father's  house  "  (by  which  Christians  generally 
understand  that  heaven  is  meant),  says  :  "  I  go  to  pre- 
pare a  place  for  you.  And  if  I  go  and  prepare  a  place 
for  you,  I  will  come  again  and  receive  you  unto  myself; 
that  where  I  am,  their  ye  maybe  also."  (John  xiv.  2,  3.) 
This  is  one  of  the  strongest  passages  cited  to  prove  that 
heaven  is  3,  place.  "The  Bible  calls  it  a  place,  and  does 
not  the  Bible  mean  what  it  says  ?  " — is  the  usual  form 
of  the  argument  resorted  to  by  the  old  theologians. 

But  the  Bible,  as  we  believe  and  as  Swedenborg 
everywhere  teaches,  has  both  a  natural  and  a  spiritual 
sense  related  like  body  and  soul.  The  spiritual  is  the 
true  and  real  sense,  as  the  soul  is  the  true  and  real  man; 
for  the  Bible  was  given  to  instruct  mankind  about  spir- 
itual and  not  about  natural  things.  Accordingly  all 
places  mentioned  in  Scripture,  signify,  in  their  true  spir- 
itual sense,  certain  states  of  life — for  place  corresponds 
to  state.  And  all  words  which,  in  their  natural  sense, 
refer  to  places  and  changes  of  place,  in  their  spiritual 
sense  refer  to  mental  states  and  changes  of  state.  Thus 
the  Bible  speaks  of  certain  persons  hem-g  far  from  the 
Lord,  and  of  others  as  being  near  Him.    It  also  invites 


TESTIMONY  OF  SCRIPTURE. 


83 


US  to  look  to  Him,  to  dmiu  nigli  to  Him, /<;//(; re  after 
Him,  come  unto  Him,  etc.  And  is  it  to  be  understood 
from  this,  as  really  teaching  that  some  people  are  nearer 
to  God  than  others  as  to  space,  or  according  to  the  natu- 
ral idea?  Or  that,  to  look  unto  Him  we  must  turn  our 
natural  faces  to  some  particular  point  of  the  compass? 
— or  to  follozu  Him  or  conic  unto  Him,  our  bodies  must 
pass  through  a  portion  of  space  ?  This  is  what  it  appears 
to  teach — what  it  actually  docs  teach  if  its  words  must  be 
interpreted  in  their  merely  natural  sense. 

But  every  one  sees  that  such  a  literal  interpretation 
would  be  most  absurd.  Every  one  knows  that,  to  be 
far  from  the  Lord,  is  to  be  far  from  Him  spiritually — 
distance  from  Him  being  difference  in  state,  remoteness 
from  that  state  of  pure  and  unselfish  love  in  which  He 
is,  and  which  is  Himself.  And  to  look  unto  Him,  is  to 
look  with  the  understanding,  or  the  mind's  eye,  to  those 
divine-human  qualities  revealed  in  the  person  of  Jesus 
Christ.  To  folloiu  Him,  or  dratu  nigh  unto  Him,  is  not 
to  pass  through  any  natural  space,  but  to  pass  from  a 
low,  carnal,  selfish  state,  to  one  more  internal,  pure  and 
unselfish — more  like  that  of  the  Lord  Himself  We  fol- 
lozu  Him  when  we  obey  his  precepts — deny  self — engage 
in  spiritual  conflict  with  the  hells  within  us,  as  He  did 
while  glorifying  the  assumed  human.  And  we  thus  ap- 
proach nearer  to  Him  by  becoming  spiritually  more  like 
Him — receiving  more  of  his  own  divine-human  life  into 
our  hearts.  So,  too,  when  the  angels  are  said  to  descend 
from  heaven  to  men,  we  are  not  to  understand  that  they 
come  down  through  space,  but  that  they  descend  to  men's 
states  with  heavenly  gifts  suited  to  their  wants  and  their 


84 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


capacity  to  receive ;  comparatively  as  a  wise  teacher 
comes  dozun  to  the  states  of  little  children  with  instruc- 
tion adapted  to  their  feeble  capacity.  And  when  the 
Lord  says,  "  I  came  fortJt  from  the  Father,  and  am  come 
into  the  world ;  again  I  leave  the  world  and  go  to  the 
Father,"  no  one  understands  Him  as  meaning  that  He 
came  from  or  passed  through  any  particular  region  of 
space.  He  came  by  assuming  a  material  body,  whereby 
He  was  enabled  to  descend  to  the  very  ultimates  of  hu- 
manity with  regenerating  and  saving  power.  And  from 
this  lowest  state  He  (as  to  his  assumed  human)  passed, 
by  a  process  of  glorification  of  which  our  regeneration 
is  an  image,  through  all  superior  states,  even  to  a  full 
and  perfect  union  with  the  Divine.  This  is  the  way  in 
which  He  again  left  the  world,  as  He  says,  and  zvcnt  to 
the  Father.  And  in  this  way,  too,  He  prepared  a  place 
in  the  Father's  house  for  all  his  faithful  followers;  that 
is,  He  made  possible,  henceforward,  the  salvation  and 
happiness  of  all  who  should,  by  his  divine  aid,  be  brought 
into  states  of  genuine  good  and  truth  however  humble. 

But  the  Scripture  furnishes  testimony  on  this  subject 
still  more  explicit  and  conclusive.  We  read  that  the 
Pharisees,  on  one  occasion,  asked  our  Lord  "  when  the 
kingdom  of  God  should  come."  And  this  was  his  an- 
swer :  "  The  kingdom  of  God  cometh  not  with  observa- 
tion :  Neither  shall  they  say,  Lo,  here !  or  lo,  there  ! 
For  behold  the  kingdom  of  God  is  within  you."  (Luke 
xvii.  20,  21.)  Now  the  kingdom  of  God  and  the  king- 
dom of  heaven  mean  one  and  the  same  thing ;  for  heaven 
is  his  kingdom.  (Compare  Matt.  v.  3  with  Luke  vi.  20: 
also  Matt.  iv.  17  with  Mark  i.  15 ;  and  Matt.  xix.  14  with 


TESTIMONY  OF  SCRIPTURE. 


85 


Mark  x.  14.)  We  have,  then,  the  plain  testimony  of 
Scripture,  that  heaven  or  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  not 
without  but  within  the  soul.  It  cannot,  therefore,  be 
located.  It  cannot  be  said  to  be  in  any  particular  place, 
for  it  is  in  all  heavenly-minded  people  wherever  they 
may  be.  Therefore  it  must  be  a  state  of  life.  But  does 
the  Scripture  tell  us  what  is  the  nature  of  that  state  ? 
And  if  so,  how  does  its  teaching  tally  with  Sweden- 
borg's  ? 

And  here  the  primitive  meaning  of  the  original  Greek 
and  Hebrew  word  for  heaven,  should  first  receive  atten- 
tion. The  Hebrew  word  for  it  is  shdina-yiin,  which  means 
the  firmament,  or  the  region  of  space  above  the  earth.  It 
comes  from  an  obsolete  root  shdmd,  the  meaning  of 
which  in  the  cognate  Arabic  language  is,  to  be  high  or 
lifted  np.  And  to  this  Arabic  radical  lexicographers  re- 
fer the  Hebrew  term  as  denoting  a  high  locality.  The 
Greek  ouranos  which  answers  to  the  Hebrew  shdma-yim, 
and  is  also  translated  by  our  English  heaven,  means  the 
same  as  the  Hebrew — the  region  above  or  the  vast  con- 
cave surrounding  the  earth.  {See  ScJileusncr  s  Greek  and 
Latin  Lexicon))  And  most  philologists  derive  it  from  the 
Greek  orao,  to  see — as  referring  to  the  space  above  or 
around  the  earth,  that  is  pervaded  by  the  light  of  the  sun. 

Heaven,  then,  according  to  the  literal  meaning  of  the- 
term  in  both  the  Hebrew  and  Greek,  denotes  an  elevated 
place.  And  in  the  Bible  it  is  said  to  be  high,  and  to  be 
located  07i  high.  Accordingly,  it  is  common  for  little 
children  to  think  and  speak  of  heaven  as  a  place  up  in 
the  sky ;  for  it  is  not  to  be  expected  that  they  should 
think  otherwise  than  according  to  the  sense  of  the  let- 
8 


86 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


ten  And  many  adults  have  not  advanced  beyond  this 
natural  childish  thought.  Now  why  is  it  that  a  state  of 
angelic  love  and  bliss,  should  be  designated  in  Holy 
Scripture  by  a  word  which,  in  its  strictly  literal  sense, 
means  a  liigli  place  ?  Swedenborg  furnishes  a  satisfactory 
answer  to  this  question  in  his  doctrine  concerning  the 
Scripture,  teaching  us  that-it  contains  both  a  natural  and 
spiritual  sense  which  correspond  like  body  and  soul. 
Accordingly  there  is  natural  height  and  spiritual  height; 
or  elevation  in  space,  and  elevation  of  state.  Whenever 
a  high  place,  therefore,  is  mentioned  in  the  Word,  a  high 
mental  or  spiritual  state  is  what  is  denoted  in  the  spiritual 
and  true  sense. 

But  what  is  a  high  spiritual  state?  Is  it  any  other 
than  a  state  of  elevated  thought,  affection  and  purpose? 
— a  state  of  pure  and  unselfish  love  ? — a  state  in  which 
we  think  of  and  seek  after,  not  merely  our  own  good, 
but  the  highest  good  of  our  neighbor  also,  in  the  largest 
as  well  as  the  smallest  form.  Persons  of  this  character 
are  spiritually  near  the  Lord,  and  may  well  be  said  to 
dwell  on  high.  They  are  spiritually  on  high,  for  they 
live  above  the  world  while  in  it.  Hence  it  is  often  said 
of  such,  whose  lives  are  devoted  to  lofty  and  beneficent 
ends,  that  they  are  superior  persons — persons  of  elevated 
m  desires,  exalted  views,  lofty  aims,  etc.  And  the  Scripture 
saith,  "  He  that  humbleth  himself,  shall  be  exalted." 
Every  one  perceives  that  spiritual  exaltation  is  what  is 
here  meant,  or  that  elevation  of  state  which  comes  from 
subduing  our  selfish  and  infernal  propensities — from  hum- 
bling self,  and  permitting  the  Lord  alone  to  be  exalted 
to  the  supreme  place  in  the  soul. 


TESTIMONY  OF  SCRIPTURE. 


87 


The  state  of  life,  therefore,  in  which  Swedenborg  tells 
us  the  angels  are,  is  clearly  a  high  state.  Hence  we  may- 
understand  why  heaven  is  said  to  be  on  hig/i,  and  why 
the  word  itself  in  both  the  Greek  and  Hebrew,  accord- 
ing to  its  primitive  literal  import,  means  a  locality  that 
is  high.  And  we  may  see,  too,  why  man  is  said  to  have 
been  made  "  a  little  /ozvcrthan  the  angels."  In  his  fallen 
or  unregenerate  state,  he  is  a  great  deal  lower. 

Because  the  word  high  when  used  in  Scripture  has 
such  spiritual  signification,  denoting  elevation  of  state, 
or  purity  of  love  and  exaltation  of  wisdom,  therefore  the 
Lord  is  called  the  Jl/osi  High,  and  is  said  to  dwell  on 
high,  above  the  earth  and  above  the  heavens.  Certainly 
natural  or  spatial  elevation  is  not  to  be  thought  of,  when 
such  things  are  predicated  of  the  omnipresent  Jehovah. 
No.  It  is  because  He  is  the  highest  as  to  state  or  qual- 
ity of  life — infinitely  exalted  above  men  and  angels  as 
to  the  quality  and  degree  of  his  love  and  wisdom,  that 
He  is  said  to  be  the  Highest,  above  the  earth  and  the 
heavens.  And  what  is  it  that  really  exalts  men,  or 
makes  them  spiritually  high,  but  such  a  reception  of  the 
Lord's  love  and  wisdom  as  recreates  them  in  his  own 
image  and  likeness This  lifts  their  souls  on  high. 
We  know  it  is  not  uncommon  for  Christians,  when  in  a 
cold,  external,  or  very  low  state  of  mind,  to  pray  that 
the  Lord  woujd  lift  ihc?n  up  out  of  that  state.  And  the 
Psalmist  speaks  of  God's  setting  certain  ones  "  oji  high," 
and  of  others  being  "  brought  loxu  " — where  it  is  plain 
that  these  terms  have  no  reference  whatever  to  space, 
but  to  mental  state. 

But  the  Bible  furnishes  still  more  positive  evidence 


88 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


concerning  the  essential  nature  of  heaven.  It  contains, 
as  Christians  generally  believe,  all  the  laws  of  our  spir- 
itual life.  And  these  laws  must  be  in  their  nature  eter- 
nal as  the  soul  itself,  for  they  are  laws  of  the  soul. 
They  are  spiritual  laws,  and  must  therefore  exist  and 
operate  wherever  human  spirits  exist — in  the  Here- 
after as  well  as  here.  Whatever  laws,  therefore,  the 
Bible  contains  for  the  government  of  human  beings  here 
on  earth,  are  the  very  laws  to  which  the  angelic  hosts 
are  subject.  "  Forever,  O  Jehovah,  thy  Word  is  estab- 
lished in  heaven,"  says  the  inspired  Psalmist:  Which 
clearly  authorizes  the  conclusion  that  the  truth  of  God's 
Word  is  the  law  of  life  for  the  angels  in  heaven.  And 
the  Lord  Himself,  when  speaking  as  the  Word  incar- 
nate, says:  "I  am  the  living  bread  which  came  down 
from  heaven."  Tiie  living  bread  from  heaven  can  be 
none  other  than  the  Lord's  own  love  and  wisdom,  the 
goods  and  truths  of  his  Word ;  and  these  are  Himself. 
These  are  wliat  feed  and  nourish  the  angels,  and  coming 
down  from  heaven  (that  is,  beini^  properly  clothed,  and 
accommodated  to  our  low  human  condition)  give  life — 
.spiritual  and  eternal  life — to  the  world.  To  receive  the 
goods  and  truths  of  the  Word  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
make  them  of  our  life,  to  have  our  souls  filled  and  vital- 
ized by  them,  is  to  receive  the  Lord  Himself  It  is  to 
eat  his  flesh  and  drink  his  blood.  This  .is  "  the  bread 
of  life  " — "  the  true  bread  from  heaven."  "  If  any  man 
eat  of  this  bread,  he  shall  live  forever."  And  there  can 
be  no  true  spiritual  life  without  it.  "  Except  ye  eat  the 
flesh  of  the  Son  of  Man  and  drink  his  blood,  ye  have  no 
life  in  you,"  saith  the  Lord.    That  no  material  flesh  or 


TESTIMONY  OF  SCRIPTURE. 


89 


blood  is  here  meant,  but  the  good  of  the  Lord's  own 
love  and  the  truths  of  wisdom  with  which  his  Word  is 
all  aglow,  is  plain  enough ;  for,  as  if  to  place  the  mean- 
ing beyond  all  doubt,  this  is  immediately  added  :  "  It  is 
the  spirit  that  quickeneth  ;  the  flesh  profiteth  nothing : 
the  words  that  I  speak  unto  you,  they  are  spirit  and 
they  are  life."  (John  vi.  51-63.)  And  so  we  have  Di- 
vine authority  for  affirming  that  the  Lord's  words  are 
the  living  bread  of  heaven — the  food  on  which  the  an- 
gels live. 

Furthermore,  we  are  taught  to  pray  that  the  Lord's 
will  may  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is  done  in  heaven. 
What  can  this  mean  but  that  men  on  earth  should  de- 
sire and  seek  after  the  life  of  heaven  ? — Should  cherish 
such  loves  as  the  angels  cherish,  act  from  such  motives 
as  the  angels  act  from,  aim  at  such  ends  as  the  angels 
aim  at,  and  in  all  things  endeavor  to  conform  their 
lives  to  the  revealed  laws  or  will  of  the  Lord  as  the  an- 
gels do. 

Now  if  we  can  learn  from  the  written  Word  what  is 
the  essential  nature  of  the  life  which  men  on  earth  are 
capable  of  receiving,  and  which  God  desires  they  should 
receive,  we  may  then  know  what  kind  of  life  the  angels 
receive,  or  what  is  the  essential  nature  of  heaven.  In 
other  words,  we  may  learn  how  the  angels  live,  by  see- 
ing how  the  Lord  requires  those  to  live  whom  He  de- 
sires and  is  endeavoring  to  make  angels. 

We  read  in  the  prophecy  by  Micah :  "  He  hath 
showed  thee,  O  man,  what  is  good ;  and  what  doth  Je- 
hovah require  of  thee,  but  to  do  justly,  and  to  love 
mercy,  and  to  walk  humbly  with  thy  God?"  (vi.  8.) 
s* 


90 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


And  in  the  gospel  by  Matthew :  "  Thou  shalt  love  the 
Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul, 
and  with  all  thy  mind.  This  is  the  first  and  gi-eat  com- 
mandment. And  the  second  is  like  unto  it.  Thou  shalt 
love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself.  On  these  two  command- 
ments hang  all  the  law  and  the  prophets."  (xxii. 
37-40.)  The  meaning  of  which  is,  that  the  sum  and 
substance  of  all  that  the  law  and  the  prophets  teach,  is 
comprehended  in  these  two  commandments.  In  other 
words,  that  these  are  the  comprehensive  principles  or 
leading  ideas  which  the  Scripture  everywhere  inculcates. 
And  if  these  ought  to  be  men's  governing  principles  or 
ruling  loves,  then  they  must  be  the  ruling  loves  of  peo- 
ple in  heaven.  Again  we  read  "  God  is  love ;  and  he 
that  dwelleth  in  love,  dvvelleth  in  God  and  God  in  him. 
.  .  .  And  this  cofnmandment  have  we  from  Him,  That 
he  who  loveth  God,  love  his  brother  also."  (i  John  iv. 
16,  21.)  And  again  :  "  All  things  whatsoever  ye  would 
that  men  should  do  to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them  ;  for 
this  is  the  law  and  the  prophets :  "  Again  teaching  us 
that  love  is  the  vital  and  pervading  principle  of  the 
whole  of  the  inspired  Word.  And  if  such  be  the  re- 
vealed law  of  life  for  men  on  earth,  must  it  not  also  be 
the  law  of  life  for  those  in  heaven  ? 

We  thus  see  that  the  Bible  affords  abundant  confir- 
mation of  the  truth  of  what  Swedenborg  has  told  us  in 
regard  to  the  essential  nature  of  heaven,  or  the  kind  of 
life  that  prevails  there.  And  when  love  of  the  Lord 
and  the  neighbor  is  the  ruling  love  in  any  mind,  it  is 
clear  that  all  subordinate  loves  thence  proceeding  must 
needs  be  good.    Those  in  whom  this  love  bears  rule, 


TESTIMONY  OF  SCRIPTURE. 


91 


can  have  no  narrow  or  selfish  aims.  Their  supreme  de- 
sire and  purpose  will  be,  to  serve  others  by  performing 
the  highest  use  they  are  made  capable  of  performing. 
They  will  not  forget  "  to  do  good  and  communicate," 
knowing  that,  "  with  such  sacrifices  God  is  well  pleased." 
They  will  intend  nothing  and  do  nothing  but  what  will 
contribute  to  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  their  neigh- 
bor. In  short,  they  will  study  to  know,  and  in  all 
things  seek  to  do,  the  will  of  their  heavenly  Father. 
And  this,  according  to  Swedenborg,  is  precisely  what 
the  angels  intend,  seek,  love  and  do. 

Thus  far  in  our  inquiry,  we  have  found  the  truth  of 
Swedenborg's  disclosures  to  be  amply  sustained  by  rea- 
son and  Scripture  and  the  known  laws  of  the  human 
soul.  We  have  seen  that  angels  were  not  created  such, 
but  were  all  once  inhabitants  of  the  natural  world ;  that 
they  are  all  human — men  advanced  to  a  higher  and 
more  perfect  state.  This  view  presents  the  angelic  host, 
not  at  an  immeasurable  distance  from,  but  in  a  near  and 
brotherly  relation  to,  people  here  on  earth  ;  while  at  the 
same  time  it  reveals  the  possibility,  and  can  hardly  fail 
(one  would  think)  to  kindle  in  the  hearts  of  believers 
the  desire  of  some  day  becoming  angels  themselves. 

It  has  been  further  shown  that  every  man  takes  his 
own  life  with  him  into  the  other  world,  and  that  his  life 
is  his  ruling  love.  This  is  the  soul's  real  life.  And 
such  as  is  the  nature  or  quality  of  this  love  at  the  time 
of  death,  such  it  remains.  And  since  heaven  is  essen- 
tially a  state  of  life,  therefore  all  who  go  to  heaven 
must  carry  their  heaven  with  them ;  at  least  they  must 


92 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


carry  its  germ,  its  essence,  something  of  that  unselfish 
love  which,  in  its  full  and  final  expansion,  makes  heaven 
and  its  delights.  We  can  carry  with  us  into  the  other 
world  no  other  life,  and  can  have  no  other  there,  than 
that  which  we  have  sought  and  in  some  degree  formed 
for  ourselves  while  in  the  flesh.  Therefore  none  can 
enter  heaven,  save  those  who  have  learned  to  love  and 
live  the  life  of  heaven — have  learned  to  think  and  feel 
and  will  and  act  to  some  extent  like  the  angels. 

Look,  now,  at  this  teaching  in  a  practical  point  of 
view.  What  is  its  manifest  and  legitimate  tendency  ? 
Can  we  conceive  of  anything  calculated  to  exert  a  more 
benign  influence  on  the  hearts  and  lives  of  those  who 
receive  it? — anything  better  fitted  to  liftmen  above  a 
mean  selfishness  and  sordid  avarice,  to  enlarge  their 
hearts,  purify  their  motives  and  exalt  their  aims  ? — any 
instruction  more  healthy  and  stimulating,  or  better  cal- 
culated to  make  the  receiver  honest  and  unselfish,  kind 
and  forgiving,  just  and  generous,  meek  and  pure  and 
lowly  in  heart? — any  that  offers  a  stronger  inducement 
to  deny  self,  take  up  the  cross,  and  follow  the  Lord  in 
the  regeneration  ? 

In  the  light  of  this  new  doctrine  it  is  clear  that  if  we 
ever  go  to  heaven  we  must  begin  on  earth  to  form  a 
heavenly  character.  We  see  the  weight  of  an  endless 
eternity  pressing  upon  each  day  and  hour  of  our  exist- 
ence here  below ;  and  seeing  this,  we  shall  see  and  feel 
the  need  of  continual  repentance,  earnest  prayer,  daily 
watchfulness  and  ceaseless  effort  to  subdue  within  us 
(with  Divine  assistance)  whatever  is  contrary  to  the  life 
of  heaven ; — the  need  of  continual  striving  to  think, 


TESTIMONY  OF  SCRIPTURE. 


93 


will  and  act  under  the  influence  of  the  Lord's  own  love, 
and  according  to  the  revealed  laws  of  angelic  life.  Is  it 
good  and  useful  to  mingle  in  the  society,  read  the  biog- 
raphies and  contemplate  the  character  of  true  and  right- 
eous men  ?  Does  it  quicken  our  aspirations,  exalt  our 
aims  and  incite  us  to  higher  and  nobler  endeavor? 
How  much  more  quickening  and  exalting  in  its  ten- 
dency, then,  must  be  that  pure  and  lofty  standard  of 
humanity  as  revealed  through  Swedenborg  in  the  char- 
acter of  the  angels  !  Its  tendency  is  to  raise  us  to  the 
stature  of  spiritual  manhood;  for  it  discloses  the  sub- 
lime capabilities  of  the  human  soul — reveals  the  true 
"  measure  of  a  man,  that  is,  of  the  angel."  (Rev.  xxi. 
17.) 

Let  the  hearts  and  lives  of  all  men  be  formed  after 
this  heavenly  pattern,  and  what  a  different  world  would 
this  of  ours  be !  Tiie  wilderness  would  indeed  be 
changed  to  Eden,  the  desert  to  the  garden  of  the  Lord. 
People  of  different  ranks  and  professions,  of  various 
climes  and  colors,  would  then  form  a  shining  band  of  ^ 
brothers,  bound  each  to  each  by  the  golden  links  of 
love.  No  hate,  no  scorn,  no  pride,  no  avarice,  no  self- 
seeking,  no  injustice,  no  tyranny,  no  violation  of  any  of 
the  divine  laws  of  brotherhood,  but  mutual  love  and 
mutual  help,  united  with  deep  humility  and  confiding 
trust,  would  be  here.  The  Father's  will  would  be  done 
on  earth  as  it  is  done  in  heaven.  Men  would  be,  as  the 
angels  are,  God's  ministering  servants,  striving  mutually 
to  aid  and  bless  each  other.  A  great  family  of  loving, 
joyous,  happy,  obedient  children,  all  looking  up  with 
filial  love  and  reverence  to  their  heavenly  Father,  and 


94 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


suffering  themselves  evermore  to  be  led  by  his  unerring- 
hand. 

Such  would  this  world  be  if  the  life  in  heaven  as  dis- 
closed to  us  by  Swedenborg,  were  brought  down  to 
earth.  And  the  whole  object  of  this  New  Revelation 
is  to  prepare  suitable  recipient  vessels,  and  thus  aid  in 
bringing  it  down.  And  what  would  this  be,  but  a  prac- 
tical exemplification  of  the  true  Christian  Religion  ? — 
the  grand  predicted  triumph  of  the  gospel  of  peace  and 
love  ? — the  promised  second  coming  of  the  Lord,  "  with 
power  and  great  glory  "  ? — the  blissful  period  of  the 
church  foreshadowed  in  the  Revelation  under  the  figure 
of  "the  Holy  Jerusalem  descending  out  of  heaven  from 
God,  having  the  glory  of  God:"  when  "the  tabernacle 
of  God  shall  be  with  men,  and  He  will  dwell  with  them, 
and  they  shall  be  his  people,  and  God  Himself  shall  be 
with  them,  their  God."    (xxi.  3.) 

But  the  ruling  loves  of  the  angels  are  not  the  loves 
of  any  of  us  in  our  natural  or  unregenerate  state.  They 
are  not  such  loves  as  we  receive  hereditarily,  but  loves 
that  are  born  of  God.  Before  we  can  become  angels, 
therefore,  a  radical  change  must  take  place  within  us. 
What  is  the  nature  of  this  change,  and  how  is  it  to  be 
wrought  ?  In  other  words,  how  is  the  heavenly  state 
to  be  attained?  What  is  the  sure  pathway  to  the 
abodes  of  bliss?  We  will  answer  this  question  in  the 
next  chapter. 


THE  SURE  WAY  TO  HEAVEN. 


95 


VIII. 

THE  SURE  WAY  TO  HEAVEN. 

A SUBJECT  of  transcendent  interest  and  import- 
ance,— and  this  seems  as  suitable  a  place  as  any 
for  its  treatment.  It  is  none  other,  indeed,  than  an  in- 
quiry as  to  the  sure  way  of  attaining  the  end  for  wliich 
we  were  created — a  state  of  internal  and  spiritual  con- 
junction with  the  Lord;  which  is  the  highest  and  most 
perfect  state  that  a  human  being  is  capable  of  attaining 
— a  state  of  unutterable  bliss. 

We  have  already  shown — we  trust  with  sufficient 
clearness — that  heaven  is  not  a  place,  but  a  state  of  life. 
And  the  nature  of  that  state  has  also  been  made  suf- 
ficiently plain.  But  we  are  none  of  us  naturally  or  by 
inheritance  in  the  state  denoted  by  heaven,  but  in  one 
quite  the  opposite  ;  for  we  are  naturally  dominated  by 
a  supreme  love  of  self,  which  is  the  ruling  lov^e  of  those 
in  hell.  If  we  ever  reach  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  there- 
fore, our  hereditary  state  must  be  wholly  changed,  and 
a  new  state  be  formed,  by  a  process  which  the  Bible  calls 
regeneration,  or  a  neiu  creation.  Thus  the  old  hereditary 
life  of  self-love  and  the  love  of  the  world  must  be  cast 
aside  or  die,  and  a  new  and  higher  life  be  received  from 
the  Divine  Humanity — the  life  of  love  to  the  Lord  and 
the  neighbor. 

It  needs  no  argument  to  prove  that  the  state  of  the 
natural  man  is  the  very  opposite  to  that  of  heaven.  This 
is  well  known  to  all.  Look  at  the  character  and  con- 
duct of  men  who  follow  their  natural  bent,  who  never 


96 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


think  of  practising  self-denial,  but  always  yield  to  the 
promptings  of  their  hereditary  inclinations.  Do  such 
men  live  and  act  like  the  angels  ?  Do  they  seek  first 
— that  is,  as  the  thing  of  supreme  moment — the  king- 
dom of  God  and  his  righteousness  ?  Do  they  regard 
their  neighbor's  good — the  good  of  the  community,  the 
state,  the  church,  the  Lord's  kingdom — as  paramount 
to  their  own.  or  as  a  matter  of  even  equal  concern  ?  Do 
they  not,  on  the  contrary,  act  with  sole  reference  to  their 
own  private  interests,  regardless  of  the  welfare  or  the 
rights  of  their  neighbor?  Do  not  the  past  history  and 
present  condition  of  mankind  prove  that  an  absorbing 
and  predominant  selfishness  is  the  withering  curse  of 
our  race  ?  Has  it  not  eaten  like  a  canker  into  the  souls 
of  men,  and  left  its  sad  and  sickening  blight  on  every 
feature  of  human  society  ? 

And  if  we  look  into  our  own  hearts,  do  we  not  there 
learn  the  same  melancholy  fact  ?  Do  we  not  find  that 
self-love  is  naturally  our  ruling  love?  Is  it  not  a  diffi- 
cult task — one  that  requires  us  to  struggle  against  our 
natural  inclination — to  do  always  the  thing  which  we 
know  to  be  right  in  the  sight  of  God  ? — to  obey  the  re- 
vealed laws  of  neighborly  love  ? — to  do  to  others  as  we 
would  have  them  do  to  us  ? — to  return  good  for  evil, 
blessing  for  cursing? — to  love,  bless,  do  good  to  and 
pray  for  our  enemies?  Every  one  knows  that,  to  do 
this,  often  requires  much  self-denial  and  self-compulsion, 
and  sometimes  a  pretty  severe  internal  struggle  with 
"  the  old  man."  And  this  single  fact,  that  the  laws  of 
our  higher  life  cannot  be  obeyed  by  us  without  an  effort 


THE  SURE  WAY  TO  HEAVEN. 


97 


at  self-denial  sometimes  severe  and  painful,  proves  that 
our  hereditary  life  is  the  opposite  of  heavenly  life. 

And  the  teaching  of  the  Bible,  too,  agrees  with  our 
private  experience  and  the  experience  and  history  of  our 
race.  The  Scripture  throughout  recognizes  man's  hered- 
itary state  as  a  perverted,  disorderly,  fallen  state.  It 
represents  Him  as  alienated  from  God,  opposed  to  his 
laws,  averse  to  doing  his  commandments ;  as  spiritually 
corrupt,  defiled,  diseased  throughout ;  as  dead  in  tres- 
passes and  sins,  and  utterly  unfit  for  the  kingdom  of 
heaven.  Therefore  the  natural  love  of  self  must  be  de- 
nied, resisted  and  overcome.  This  old  hereditary  life 
must  be  forsaken  or  lost  for  the  Lord's  sake,  that  is,  for 
the  sake  of  that  new  and  higher  life  which  is  his  own — 
his  very  Self  Agreeable  to  his  own  words  :  "  He  that 
loseth  his  life  for  my  sake,  shall  find  it."  (Matt.  x.  39.) 
The  natural  heart  must  be  re-created  in  the  Divine  image 
and  likeness,  or  rather  a  new  heart  (or  will)  must  be 
formed  within  and  above  the  old  one,  before  we  can 
reach  the  heavenly  state,  or  enter  into  the  kingdom  of 
heaven.  Therefore  the  Lord  says  :  "  Except  a  man  be 
born  again  [literally,  born  from  above],  he  cannot  see  the 
kingdom  of  God."  To  be  born  from  above,  is  to  be  born 
of  Him  who  is  above  all,  even  the  Most  High.  It  is  to 
be  spiritually  created  anew  in  the  image  of  our  Divine 
Lord  and  Master.  It  is  to  receive  from  Him  those  sweet 
affections,  and  holy  desires,  and  humble  feelings,  and 
noble  purposes  which  belong  to  all  heavenly  states  of 
mind,  and  which  come  down  to  us  from  God  out  of 
heaven.  All  who  are  thus  "  born  from  above,"  are,  as 
Paul  says,  "  a  new  creation.  Old  things  are  passed  away; 
9  G 


98 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


behold  all  things  arc  become  new."  (2Cor.  v.  17.)  And 
by  this  inward  spiritual  renewal  they  become  the  true 
children  of  God.  They  receive  a  continual  influx  of  his 
divine  spirit — the  spirit  of  gentleness,  meekness,  patience, 
love,  forbearance,  forgiveness,  and  heroic  self-sacrifice 
for  others'  good.  In  their  thoughts,  dispositions  and 
purposes,  they  resemble  their  Father  in  the  heavens. 
They  have  their  Father's  name  written  in  their  foreheads. 
Thus  Paul  writes  to  the  church  at  Ephesus :  "  That  ye 
put  off  .  .  .  the  old  man  which  is  corrupt  according  to 
the  deceitful  lusts,  and  be  renewed  in  the  spirit  of  your 
mind ;  and  that  ye  put  on  the  new  man  which  after  God 
is  created  in  righteousness  and  true  holiness."  (iv.  22- 
24.) 

In  like  manner  Swedenborg,  but  more  full  and  ex- 
plicit: 

"  When  man  is  regenerated,  he  becomes  altogether 
another  man,  and  is  made  new ;  therefore  also  when  he 
is  regenerated,  he  is  said  to  be  born  again,  and  created 
anew.  In  this  case,  although  his  face  is  like  what  it 
was  before,  and  also  his  speech,  yet  his  mind  is  not  like 
his  former  mind;  for  his  mind  when  he  is  regenerated, 
is  open  towards  heaven,  and  there  dwells  therein  love 
to  the  Lord  and  charity  towards  his  neighbor,  together 
with  faith.  It  is  the  mind  which  makes  another  and  a 
new  man.  Change  of  state  cannot  be  perceived  in  the 
body  of  man,  but  in  his  spirit,  the  body  being  only  the 
covering  of  his  spirit;  and  when  it  is  put  off,  then  his 
spirit  appears,  and  this  in  altogether  another  form  when 
he  is  regenerated  ;  for  it  has  then  the  form  of  love  and 
charity  in  beauty  inexpressible,  instead  of  its  pristine 
form,  which  was  that  of  hatred  and  cruelty  with  a  de- 
formity also  inexpressible.    Hence  it  may  be  seen  what 


THE  SURE  WAY  TO  HEAVE!^. 


99 


a  regenerate  person  is,  or  one  that  is  born  again,  or  cre- 
ated anew,  viz.,  that  he  is  altogether  another  and  a  new 
man." — A.  C.  3212. 

And  so,  conformably  to  this  doctrine  concerning  the 
corrupt  and  anti-heavenly  state  of  the  natural  heart,  the 
Bible  throughout  teaches  that  a  great  work  is  to  be 
done  before  we  can  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  It 
teaches  that  we  must  believe  in,  look  to,  and  follow  after 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ;  "for  without  me,"  He  says,  "ye 
can  do  nothing."  It  teaches  that  we  must  learn  and 
live  according  to  the  laws  of  the  heavenly  life  which  He 
has  revealed  ; — must  "  hear  the  Word  of  God  and  do  it," 
else  we  cannot  be  fit  for  an  abode  among  the  blessed. 
It  insists  on  the  necessity  of  repentance,  self-denial, 
watchfulness  and  prayer.  Its  language  is  :  "  Except  ye 
repent,  ye  shall  all  likewise  perish."  "  Whosoever  will 
come  after  me,  let  him  deny  himself."  "  What  I  say 
unto  you  I  say  unto  all,  Watch."  "  Pray  without  ceas- 
ing." It  represents  the  life  of  those  journeying  heaven- 
ward, as  a  struggle,  a  warfare,  a  ceaseless  conflict  with 
the  inclinations  of  the  natural  man,  "  the  foes  of  our 
own  household."  It  says  :  "  Strive  [literally,  ag-o>ii.::e'] 
to  enter  in  through  the  strait  gate."  "  These  [the  mul- 
titude whom  the  seer  of  Patmos  beheld  'arrayed  in 
white  robes ']  are  they  who  came  out  of  great  tribula- 
tion." And  the  Lord  says :  "  If  any  man  will  come  af- 
ter me,  let  him  deny  himself,  and  take  up  his  cross,  and 
follow  me.  For  whosoever  will  save  his  life,  shall  lose 
it;  and  whosoever  will  lose  his  life  for  my  sake,  shall 
find  it."    (Matt.  xvi.  24,  '5.) 

Yes  :  Following  in  the  footsteps  of  our  Divine  Master 


lOO 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


— resisting  and  overcoming,  through  his  ever-present 
divine  aid,  the  evil  inclinations  of  our  hereditary  nature, 
as  He  resisted  and  overcame  the  evils  in  his  assumed 
humanity — this  is  the  sure  and  the  07ily  sure  way  to 
heaven.  And  this  requires  faith,  courage,  sacrifice,  en- 
durance, spiritual  conflict  and  a  willingness  to  give  up 
our  own  selfish  life  for  the  Lord's  sake— for  the  sake, 
that  is,  of  that  higher,  purer,  diviner  life  which  He  is 
at  all  times  ready  and  longing  to  give,  and  which  is 
Himself  A  man's  life  is  his  love;  and  onrVik  is  the 
life  we  receive  by  natural  inheritance — the  life  of  self- 
love  and  love  of  the  world.  But  this  is  not  our  tn/e  life. 
It  is  not  properly  human  life.  True  human  or  spiritual 
life  is  the  Lord's  own  life  in  the  soul  of  man.  It  is  the 
life  of  genuine  charity — the  living  and  active  operation 
of  a  love  that  is  quite  the  opposite  of  the  love  of  self. 
This  latter  love  must  be  denied  and  overcome  before  we 
can  receive  such  love  as  the  angels  feel,  and  which  is 
the  Lord's  own.  Thus  we  must  lose  oi/r  life  for  the 
Lord's  sake,  else  we  cannot  find  that  which  is  our  true 
and  heavenly  life.  Therefore  He  says  that  a  man  must 
/id/e  his  ozon  life,  else  "  he  cannot  be  my  disciple." 
(Luke  xiv.  26.) 

The  apostle  Paul  also  says  :  "We  must  through  much 
tribulation  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God."  And  he 
exhorts  us  to  "  fight  the  good  fight  of  faith  " — pointing, 
plainly,  to  that  spiritual  warfare  to  be  carried  on  within 
our  own  breasts  by  means  of  the  truths  of  faith  from  the 
Word — a  warfare  against  our  natural  proprium,  or  the 
ruling  loves  of  the  natural  man.  And  these  truths 
which  are  the  weapons  of  our  warfare — the  weapons 


THE  SURE  WAY  TO  HEAVEN. 


lOI 


wherewith  we  are  to  combat  our  pride,  conceit,  avarice, 
selfishness  and  all  other  hereditary  evils — the  same 
apostle  elsewhere  calls  the  "  armour  of  God,"  and  "  the 
sword  of  the  Spirit,  which  is  the  Word  of  God."  (Eph. 
vi.  13,  17.) 

The  Lord  also  teaches  that  we  are  spiritually  cleansed 
— are  sanctified  and  saved,  that  is,  brought  out  of  a  hell- 
ish and  into  a  heavenly  state,  by  means  of  the  truth, 
"  And  for  their  sakes,"  He  says,  "  I  sanctify  myself,  that 
they  also  might  be  sanctified  through  the  truth." 
"  Sanctify  them  through  thy  truth ;  thy  Word  is  truth." 
(John  xvii.  17,  19.)  It  is  the  truth  of  God's  Word 
which  makes  manifest  our  evils,  and  teaches  us  how  to 
overcome  them.  It  is  the  truth,  therefore,  by  means  of 
which  we  are  spiritually  washed  and  purified,  and  thus 
.saved  from  sin  and  its  consequences. 

But  the  Bible,  we  shall  be  told,  teaches  that  it  is  the 
blood  of  Christ  which  cleanseth  from  all  sin.  And  so, 
indeed,  it  is.  But  what  spiritual  thing  does  the  blood 
of  Christ  stand  for  or  signify  ?  It  is  the  symbol  of  the 
precious  and  ever-living  truth  of  the  Word.  This  truth 
is  the  Lord's  own  life-blood  which  is  forever  being 
poured  out  for  the  purification  and  salvation  of  human 
souls.  This,  or  the  Lord  operating  through  its  instru- 
mentality, can  cleanse  from  sin,  and  clothe  our  souls 
in  robes  of  righteousness.  Hence  that  angelic  throng 
which  the  Revelator  beheld  arrayed  in  white,  are  said 
to  "  have  washed  their  robes  and  made  them  white  in 
the  blood  of  the  Lamb." 

But  we  are  not  spiritually  cleansed,  or  brought  into 
the  heavenly  state,  by  simply  understanding  mid  believing 
9* 


102 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


the  truth.  Only  by  doing  it — shunning  as  sins  against 
God  the  indulgence  of  those  dispositions  and  feelings 
which  the  truth  condemns,  can  the  nature  of  our  ruling 
love  be  changed.  By  first  compelling  ourselves  to  yield 
obedience  to  the  requirements  of  truth,  we  are  brought 
at  last  into  a  state  in  which  obedience  is  spontaneous 
and  delightful.  This  is  the  heavenly  state.  And  then 
our  hearts  are  open  to  the  influx  of  the  Lord's  love 
which  is  the  life  and  soul  of  truth.  We  then  eat  his 
flesh  and  drink  his  blood,  and  He  dwells  in  us  and  we 
in  Him. 

This,  then,  is  the  sure  way  to  heaven ;  for  it  is  the 
way  to  pass  out  of  that  low,  carnal,  selfish  state  in  which 
we  all  are  by  inheritance,  into  that  high,  spiritual,  un- 
selfish state  in  which  the  angels  are.  Nor  is  any  other 
way  possible — any  other  than  this:  first  learning  and 
then  religiously  practicing  the  revealed  laws  of  the  heav- 
enly life.  This  is  the  teaching  of  Sacred  Scrif^ture  as 
well  as  of  enlightened  reason  and  human  experience. 
Accordingly  we  read  : 

"  Not  every  one  that  saith  unto  me,  Lord,  Lord,  shall 
enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven  ;  but  he  that  doctli  the 
will  of  my  Father  which  is  in  heaven."    (Matt.  vii.  21.) 

"  Therefore  whosoever  heareth  these  sayings  of  mine 
and  doetJi  them,  I  will  liken  him  unto  a  wise  man  who 
built  his  house  upon  a  rock.  .  .  .  And  every  one  that 
doeth  them  not,  shall  be  likened  unto  a  foolish  man  who 
built  his  house  upon  the  sand."    (v.  24.) 

Jesus  saith :  "  And  why  call  ye  me.  Lord,  Lord,  and 
do  not  the  things  which  I  say  ?  "    (Luke  vi.  46.) 

"And  He  answered  and  said  unto  them,  My  mother 


THE  SURE  WAY  TO  HEAVEN. 


103 


and  my  brethren  are  these  which  hear  the  Word  of  God 
and  do  it."    (Luke  viii.  21.) 

"  He  that  hath  my  commandments  and  kccpctJi  them, 
he  it  is  that  loveth  me ;  and  he  that  loveth  mc  shall  be 
loved  of  my  Father,  and  I  will  love  him,  and  will  mani- 
fest myself  to  him."    (John  xiv.  21.) 

"  And  the  dead  were  judged  out  of  those  things 
which  were  written  in  the  books,  according  to  their 
zuorks."    (Rev.  xx.  12.) 

And  so  throughout  the  inspired  Volume.  Again  and 
again  are  we  told  that  it  is  only  by  obeying  the  voice 
of  the  Lord,  following  after  Him,  keeping  his  com- 
mandments, learning  and  doing  the  truth,  that  we  can 
arrive  at  the  heavenly  state  ;  and  that,  in  the  great 
Hereafter,  every  one  will  be  judged  according  to  his 
zvorks. 

"  That  a  man  is  saved,"  says  Swedenborg,  "  accord- 
ing to  his  works,  the  Lord  also  teaches  in  his  parables, 
several  of  which  imply  that  they  who  do  good  are  ac- 
cepted, and  that  they  who  do  evil  are  rejected.  (See 
Matt.  xxi.  33-44;  XXV.  1-12,  14-34.  Luke  xiii.  6 ;  xix. 
13-25;  x.  30-37;  xvi.  19-31.)  .  .  .  Nevertheless,  there 
are  many  in  Christian  churches,  who  teach  that  faith 
alone  is  saving,  and  not  any  good  of  life  or  good  works. 
They  add,  also,  that  evil  of  life  or  evil  works  do  not 
condemn  those  who  are  justified  by  faith  alone,  because 
they  are  in  God  and  in  grace." — Doc.  of  Life,  n.  2,  4. 

But  it  is  important  to  remember  that  the  nature  or 
quality  of  the  works  by  which  we  are  to  be  judged,  de- 
pends on  the  kind  of  motive  which  entered  into  them  as 
their  prompting  cause,  or  which  moved  us  to  do  them. 
If  the  motive  was  evil  or  purely  selfish,  the  works  them- 


104 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


selves  were  of  the  same  nature,  however  good  they  may 
have  been  in  their  outward  form.  Accordingly  Swe- 
denborg  says : 

"  But  by  the  deeds  and  works  according  to  which 
man  is  judged,  are  not  meant  such  deeds  and  works  as 
are  merely  exhibited  in  the  external  form,  but  such  also 
as  they  are  internally  ;  for  every  one  knows  that  every 
deed  and  work  proceeds  from  man's  will  and  thought  ; 
for  if  it  were  otherwise,  his  deed  would  be  mere  motion, 
like  that  of  an  automaton  or  image.  Wherefore  a  deed 
or  work  in  itself  considered,  is  nothing  but  an  effect 
which  derives  its  soul  and  life  from  the  will  and  thought, 
so  that  it  is  will  and  thought  in  effect,  therefore  will  and 
thought  in  an  external  form.  Hence  it  follows  that  such 
as  are  the  will  and  thought  which  produce  a  deed  or 
work,  such  also  is  the  deed  or  work.  If  the  thought 
and  will  be  good,  the  deeds  and  works  are  good  ;  but  if 
the  thought  and  will  be  evil,  the  deeds  and  works  are 
evil,  although  outwardly  they  may  appear  alike." — H. 
H.  n.  472. 

But  our  life's  love  cannot  be  speedily  changed.  We 
cannot  quickly  pass  from  hell  to  heaven,  or  from  a  su- 
premely selfish  which  is  an  infernal  state,  to  the  oppo- 
site or  unselfish  state  which  is  heavenly.  This  great 
change,  like  all  orderly  divine  processes,  is  slow  and 
gradual.    Accordingly  Swedenborg  says  : 

"  Man,  when  he  is  born,  as  to  hereditary  evils  is  a 
hell  in  the  least  form  ;  and  also  becomes  a  hell,  so  far 
as  he  takes  from  hereditary  evils  and  superadds  to  them 
his  own.  Hence  it  is  that  the  order  of  his  life  from  na- 
tivity and  from  actual  life,  is  opposite  to  the  order  of 
heaven  ;  for  from  the  proprium  he  loves  himself  more 
than  the  Lord,  and  the  world  more  than  heaven  ;  when 
yet  the  life  of  heaven  consists  in  loving  the  Lord  above 


THE  SURE  WAY  TO  HEAVEiV. 


105 


all  things,  and  the  neiglibor  as  himself.  Hence  it  is 
evident  that  tlie  former  life  which  is  of  hell,  must  be  al- 
together destroyed  ;  that  is,  evils  and  falsities  must  be 
removed,  to  the  intent  that  new  life,  which  is  the  life  of 
heaven,  maybe  implanted.  This  cannot  in  anywise  be 
done  hastily;  for  every  evil  being  inrooted  with  its  fal- 
sities, has  connection  with  all  evils  and  their  falsities ; 
and  such  evils  and  falsities  are  innumerable,  and  their 
connection  is  so  manifold  that  it  cannot  be  compre- 
hended even  by  the  angels,  but  only  by  the  Lord. 
Hence  it  is  evident,  that  the  life  of  hell  with  man  cannot 
be  destroyed  suddenly,  for  if  suddenly  he  would  alto- 
gether expire  ;  and  neither  can  the  life  of  heaven  be  im- 
planted suddenly,  for  if  suddenly,  he  would  also  expire. 
There  are  thousands  and  thousands  of  aixana,  of  which 
scarcely  one  is  known  to  man,  whereby  he  is  led  of* the 
Lord,  when  from  the  life  of  hell  into  the  life  of  heaven. 
That  this  is  so,  has  been  given  me  to  know  from  heaven  ; 
and  it  has  been  likewise  confirmed  by  several  things 
which  came  to  the  apperception.  Inasmuch  as  man 
knows  scarcely  anything  concerning  these  arcana,  there- 
fore many  have  fallen  into  errors  concerning  man's  lib- 
eration from  evils  and  falsities,  or  concerning  the  remis- 
sion of  sins,  by  believing  that  the  life  of  hell  with  man 
can  in  a  moment  be  transcribed  into  the  life  of  heaven 
with  him  through  mercy  ;  when  yet  the  whole  act  of 
regeneration  is  mercy,  and  no  others  are  regenerated, 
but  those  who  receive  the  mercy  of  the  Lord  by  faith 
and  life  during  their  abode  in  the  world." — A.  C.  n.  9336 ; 
see  also  n.  9334,  5398. 

Now  is  not  this  teaching  amply  sustained  by  the  tes- 
timony of  reason,  experience  and  the  Volume  of  revela- 
tion ?  The  upbuilding  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven  in  the 
soul,  is  a  truly  divine  work,  yet  one  which  cannot  be 
performed  without  our  voluntary  cooperation.  It  should, 


ic6 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


therefore,  bear  some  resemblance  to  the  rest  of  the  Cre- 
ator's works. 

And  how  does  the  Divine  creative  energy  display  it- 
self throughout  the  material  universe  ?  Why,  in  every 
formative  process  it  proceeds  gradually.  Nothing  comes 
forth  full-formed  and  complete  all  at  once — no,  nor  very 
suddenly.  All  things  endowed  with  life — trees,  plants, 
animals,  men — commence  from  something  minute,  and 
advance  by  slow  degrees  to  their  mature  state.  And 
trees  and  animals  that  are  destined  to  live  longest,  are 
always  slowest  of  growth  and  latest  in  arriving  at  ma- 
turity. All  orderly  divine  processes  are  gradual.  Our 
globe  itself — so  science  teaches — was  many  ages  in  be- 
coming fitted  for  the  abode  of  man.  The  face  of  nature 
shorn  of  its  verdure  by  November's  frosts,  is  gradually 
renewed  by  Spring's  warm  sunshine.  The  tiny  germ 
within  the  acorn  is  gradually  developed  into  the  sturdy 
oak.  The  infant  advances  by  slow  degrees  to  the  full 
stature  of  manhood.  Must  not  the  new  spiritual  man, 
then,  advance  by  a  corresponding  process  to  the  full 
stature  of  angelhood  ?  All  analogy  proves  that  a  man's 
ruling  love  is  never  suddenly  changed. 

And  the  same  doctrine  agrees  with  and  is  confirmed 
by  universal  experience.  For  who  docs  not  know  from 
experience  that  the  uprooting  of  avarice  and  selfishness 
from  the  natural  heart,  and  implanting  therein  the  loves 
of  heaven,  is  no  sudden  work?  Conviction  of  sin  and 
conversion  (which  is  simply  turning  about  and  facing  in 
the  opposite  direction)  may  be  sudden.  But  who  ever 
heard  of  a  man's  ruling  love  (which  means  his  entire 
character)  being  suddenly  changed  from  evil  to  good  ? 


THE  SURE  WAY  TO  HEAVEN: 


107 


— or,  of  a  person  passing  quickly  from  an  infernal  to  a 
heavenly  state,  and  remaining  permanently  in  it  ?  Paul's 
conversion  while  on  his  w^ay  to  Damascus,  vv'as  sudden. 
But  were  all  his  evil  loves  as  suddenly  subdued,  and 
"  the  old  man  "  or  the  natural  proprium  brought  under 
complete  subjection  to  the  Divine  ?  So  far  from  it,  we 
find  him  many  years  after  his  conversion,  making  this 
sad  but  frank  confession  :  "  I  am  carnal,  sold  under  sin. 
.  .  .  To  will  is  present  with  me ;  but  how  to  perform 
that  which  is  good,  I  find  not.  For  the  good  that  I 
would,  I  do  not ;  but  the  evil  which  I  would  not,  that  I 
do.  ...  I  find  then  a  law,  that,  when  I  would  do  good, 
evil  is  present  with  me ;  "  and  he  concludes  with  the 
exclamation  "  O  wretched  man  that  I  am  !  Who  shall 
deliver  me  from  the  body  of  this  death  ?  "  (Rom.  vii. 
14-24.)  Which  shows  that  the  apostle's  state  was  yet 
many  removes  from  that  of  heaven. 

And  the  Scripture  confirms  the  teachings  of  analogy 
and  experience.  Our  Saviour  as  to  his  humanity,  is  our 
pattern.  And  we  read  that  "  He  grew,  and  waxed 
strong  in  spirit ;  "  that  He  "  increased  in  wisdom  and 
stature,  and  in  favor  with  God  and  man  "  (Luke  i.  80; 
ii.  52) — language  which  shows  that  the  process  of  glori- 
fication, or  the  descent  of  the  Divine  Life  into,  and  its 
union  with,  the  human,  was  gradual.  We  are  told  also 
that  "  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  like  a  grain  of  mustard- 
seed  .  .  .  which  indeed  is  the  least  of  all  seeds;  but 
when  it  is  grown  it  is  the  greatest  among  herbs,  and 
becometh  a  tree  so  that  the  birds  of  the  air  come  and 
lodge  in  the  branches  thereof"  (Matt.  xiii.  32.)  Again 
it  is  compared  to  seed  which,  when  sown,  springs  up 


io8 


HE  A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


and  unfolds  gradually,  "  first  the  blade,  then  the  ear, 
after  that  the  full  corn  in  the  ear."  (Mark  iv.  28.)  Such 
passages  plainly  teach  that  the  heavenly  life  is  acquired 
not  suddenly,  but  by  slow  degrees,  just  as  a  plant  or  tree 
unfolds  and  matures ;  and  that  one  proceeds  according 
to  the  laws  of  divine  order  as  surely  as  the  other.  And 
the  Lord  takes  care  that  the  seed- germs  of  the  heavenly 
kingdom  shall  be  early  and  securely  stored  up  in  the  in- 
teriors of  every  little  child.* 

Only  those,  then,  can  go  to  heaven,  who  begin  on 
earth  (when  of  mature  years)  to  develop  and  strengthen 
within  themselves  the  life  of  heaven:  Which  is  done 
through  religious  obedience  to  the  laws  of  that  life — by 
shunning  all  known  evils  as  sins  against  God.  No 
others,  after  they  shall  have  left  the  material  body,  will 
have  any  desire  to  go  there ;  nor  could  they  breathe  its 
pure  atmosphere,  nor  endure  its  light  and  warmth. 
They  would  be  as  much  out  of  their  element  in  heaven, 
as  a  fish  is  out  of  his  when  taken  from  the  water.  They 
would  find  the  sphere  of  heaven  so  suffocating  as  to 
cause  them  unutterable  anguish.  Accordingly  Sweden- 
borg  says : 

"Unless  heaven  be  within  a  person,  nothing  of  the 
heaven  without  him  flows-in  and  is  received.  Many 
spirits  entertain  the  opinion  that  heaven  may  be  given 
to  every  one  from  immediate  mercy ;  and  because  of 

*  "  It  would  be  impossible  for  any  one  to  live  as  a  man  without  a  germ 
of  innocence,  charity  and  mercy,  or  something  of  a  similar  nature  thence 
derived.  .  .  .  This  germ  man  receives  from  the  Lord  during  infancy  and 
childhood,  as  may  be  seen  from  the  states  of  infants  and  children.  What 
he  then  receives  is  treasured  within  him,  and  is  called  in  the  Word  a 
Ki  iiinant  or  Remains,  which  are  of  the  Lord  alone  with  man,  and  furnish 
him  with  the  capacity  of  becoming  truly  man  on  his  arrival  at  adult  age." 
— A.  C.  n.  1050. 


THE  SURE  WAY  TO  HEAVEN.  lOQ 

their  belief,  they  have  been  taken  up  into  heaven.  But 
when  they  came  there,  because  their  interior  hfe  was 
opposite  to  that  of  the  angels,  they  grew  blind  as  to 
their  intellectual  faculties  till  they  became  like  idiots, 
and  were  tortured  as  to  their  will  faculties  so  that  they 
behaved  like  madmen.  In  ^  word,  they  who  go  to  heaven 
after  living  wicked  lives,  gasp  there  for  breath,  and  writhe 
about  like  fishes  taken  from  the  water  into  the  air,  and 
like  animals  in  the  ether  of  an  air-pump  after  the  air  has 
been  exhausted.  Hence  it  is  evident  that  heaven  is  not 
without  one,  but  within  him." — H.  II.  n.  54.  See  also 
n.  400,  518,  525. 

Look,  now,  at  the  practical  tendency  of  this  new  doc- 
trine. Accept  it  as  true,  then  farewell  to  all  reliance  on 
the  efficacy  of  a  death-bed  repentance.  Farewell  to  the 
delusive  hope  of  ever  reaching  heaven  through  mere 
belief,  or  faith  alone.  The  doctrine  shows  us  that  no 
amount  of  prayers,  or  tears,  or  penitent  confessions,  or 
pious  words  uttered  on  the  bed  of  death  or  in  the  felon's 
cell,  can  avail  to  change  the  ruling  love.  It  reveals  the 
necessity,  first,  of  feeling  and  acknowledging  our  utter 
dependence  on  the  Lord;  and  second,  of  yielding  a 
voluntary  and  implicit  obedience  to  the  laws  of  his  king- 
dom. Thus  its  tendency  is  to  make  people  more  eager 
to  learn  and  more  careful  to  obey  the  revealed  laws  of 
the  angelic  life.  Every  noble  and  righteous  purpose 
cherished,  every  unselfish  and  brotherly  act  performed, 
every  self-denying  effort  put  forth  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord  and  in  acknowledged  dependence  on  Him  for  the 
needed  wisdom  and  strength,  is  a  step  on  the  way  to 
heaven  ; — something  done  towards  recreating  the  soul 
in  the  Divine  likeness,  or  building  it  up  to  "the  measure 
of  a  man,  that  is,  of  the  angel." 
10 


no 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


IX. 

LIGHT  AND  HE  A  T  IN  HE  A  VEN. 

AMONG  the  first  questions  which  people  arc  natu- 
rally inclined  to  ask  about  the  heaven  of  angels,  are 
such  as  the  following  :  Have  they  light  and  heat  there, 
as  we  have  here  ?  If  so,  what  is  their  nature  and  origin  ? 
Do  they  come  from  a  sun,  like  the  light  and  heat  of  this 
world  ?  If  the  answer  be.  Yes,  then  what  is  the  nature 
of  that  sun,  and  how  does  it  differ  from  our  own  ?  Swe- 
denborg  ought  to  be  able  to  answer  these  questions,  if 
his  claim  to  have  enjoyed  long  and  open  intercourse 
with  the  angels  be  well-founded.  And  he  has  answered 
them  with  all  the  fullness  that  we  might  expect.  Let  us 
sec  what  his  answers  are,  and  then  subject  them  to  a 
careful  examination.    He  says  : 

"  The  sun  of  this  world  does  not  appear  in  heaven, 
nor  anything  which  exists  from  this  sun,  because  all  that 
is  natural.  For  nature  commences  from  this  sun,  and 
whatsoever  is  produced  by  it  is  called  natural.  But  the 
spiritual  in  which  heaven  is,  is  above  nature,  and  entirely 
distinct  from  the  natural;  nor  do  they  communicate  with 
each  other  except  by  correspondences. 

"  But  although  the  sun  of  the  world  does  not  appear 
in  heaven,  nor  anything  which  exists  from  this  sun,  still 
there  is  a  sun  there  ;  and  light  and  heat  and  all  things 
which  are  in  the  world  and  a  great  many  more,  but  not 
from  a  similar  origin ;  for  the  things  which  exist  in  heaven 
are  spiritual,  and  those  which  exist  in  the  world  are 
natural.  The  sun  of  heaven  is  the  Lord  ;  the  light  there 
is  divine  truth,  and  the  heat  is  divine  good,  both  of  which 
proceed  from  the  Lord  as  a  sun.  From  that  origin  are 
all  things  which  exist  and  appear  in  heaven." 


LIGHT  AXD  HEAT  IN  HEAVEiV.  Ill 


"The  Lord  appears  in  heaven  as  a  sun,  because  He  is 
the  divine  love  from  which  all  spiritual  things  exist,  as 
all  natural  things  exist  by  means  of  the  sun  of  this  world. 
It  is  that  love  which  shines  as  a  sun.  .  .  .  He  appears 
differently  according  to  each  individual's  reception  of 
Him  ;  in  one  way,  therefore,  to  those  who  receive  Him 
in  the  good  of  love,  and  in  another  to  those  who  receive 
Him  in  the  good  of  faith.  To  those  who  receive  Him 
in  the  good  of  love,  He  appears  as  a  sun,  fiery  and  flam- 
ing according  to  reception.  These  are  in  his  celestial 
kingdom.  But  to  those  who  receive  Him  in  the  good 
of  faith.  He  appears  as  a  moon,  white  and  shining  ac- 
cording to  reception.  These  are  in  his  spiritual  king- 
dom."— H.  H.  n.  116-118. 

"  The  light  in  heaven  is  so  great  as  to  exceed  by  many 
degrees  the  mid-day  light  of  the  world.  I  have  often  seen 
It,  even  in  the  evening  and  night.  At  first  I  wondered 
when  I  heard  the  angels  say  that  the  light  of  the  world 
is  little  more  than  shade  in  comparison  with  the  light  of 
heaven.  But  since  I  have  seen  it,  I  can  testify  that  it  is 
so.  Its  whiteness  and  brilliancy  surpass  all  description. 
The  things  seen  by  me  in  heaven,  were  seen  in  that 
light ;  thus  more  clearly  and  distinctly  than  things  in 
the  world. 

"  The  light  of  heaven  is  not  natural  like  that  of  the 
world,  but  spiritual  ;  for  it  proceeds  from  the  Lord  as  a 
sun,  and  that  sun  is  divine  love.  That  which  proceeds 
from  the  Lord  as  a  sun,  is  called  in  the  heavens  divine 
truth,  although  in  its  essence  it  is  divine  good  united  to 
divine  truth.  Hence  the  angels  have  light  and  heat; 
light  from  the  divine  truth,  and  heat  from  the  divine 
good.  From  this  consideration  it  is  evident  that  the 
light  and  heat  of  heaven  are  not  natural  but  spiritual 
from  their  origin." — Ibid.  126,  '/• 

"The  degrees  of  spiritual  heat  may  be  understood 


112 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


from  those  of  light,  for  heat  and  light  exist  in  equal  de- 
grees. As  to  the  spiritual  light  in  which  the  angels 
dwell,  I  have  been  permitted  to  see  it  with  my  own 
eyes  ;  and  among  the  angels  of  the  higher  heavens  it  is 
so  bright  and  yet  so  glowing  as  to  surpass  description 
,  .  .  even  by  the  radiance  of  the  natural  sun.  In  a  word, 
it  exceeds  a  thousand-fold  the  noonday  light  of  the 
world."— D.  L.  VV.  n.  182. 

"  The  heat  of  heaven  in  its  essence  is  love.  It  pro- 
ceeds from  the  Lord  as  a  sun,  and  is  the  divine  love  in 
Him  and  from  Him.  Hence  it  is  evident  that  the  heat 
of  heaven  is  spiritual  as  well  as  its  light;  for  it  is  from 
the  same  origin.  The  heat  of  heaven,  like  its  light,  is 
everywhere  various.  That  in  the  celestial  kingdom  dif- 
fers from  that  in  the  spiritual ;  and  it  differs  also  in  every 
society.  And  not  only  does  it  differ  in  degree,  but  even 
in  kind.  It  is  more  intense  and  pure  in  the  Lord's 
celestial  kingdom,  because  the  angels  there  are  more  re- 
ceptive of  the  divine  good.  It  is  less  intense  and  pure 
in  the  Lord's  spiritual  kingdom,  because  the  angels  there 
are  more  receptive  of  divine  truth.  And  it  differs  also 
in  every  society  according  to  reception. 

"There  is  heat  also  in  the  hells,  but  it  is  unclean. 
The  heat  in  heaven  is  what  is  meant  by  sacred  and 
celestial  fire,  and  the  heat  of  hell  is  what  is  meant  by 
profane  and  infernal  fire;  and  by  both  is  meant  love. 
Celestial  fire  means  love  to  the  Lord  and  love  toward 
the  neighbor,  and  every  affection  derived  from  these 
loves ;  and  infernal  fire  means  the  love  of  self  and  the 
world,  and  every  lust  derived  from  these  loves." — H.  H. 
n.  133,  '4.    See  also  A.  C.  n.  1053,  2196,  2776,  3636,4415. 

Scores  of  passages  similar  to  the  foregoing,  might  be 
quoted  from  Svvedenborg's  writings.  And  he  nowhere 
teaches  anything  at  variance  with  this,  though  enjoying 
open  intercourse  with  the  angels,  and  daily  writing  of 


LIGHT  AND  HEAT  IN  HEAVEN. 


what  he  heard  and  saw  in  heaven,  for  a  period  of  nearly 
thirty  years.  What  evidence  can  be  adduced  in  con- 
firmation of  these  statements  ?  is  the  next  question  ; — 
for  we  should  not  accept  the  mere  ipse  dixit  of  any  man 
on  a  subject  of  this  nature. 

First,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  there  is  an  air  of  reason- 
ableness and  probability  about  the  statements,  which  is 
utterly  repugnant  to  the  idea  of  delusion  on  the  part  of 
the  author.  There  is  also  a  directness  and  simplicity  in 
the  manner  of  the  statements,  which  we  all  recognize  as 
among  the  characteristics  of  a  truthful  revelation.  And 
their  reasonableness  becomes  more  and  more  manifest, 
the  closer  they  are  examined, — another  strong  indica- 
tion of  their  truth.    For  consider: — 

Angels  are  human  beings  removed  from  the  lower  or 
primitive  stage  of  existence,  and  advanced  to  a  higher 
and  more  mature  state.  They  are  all  in  the  human  form. 
They  possess  the  human  faculties,  but  in  a  more  perfected 
state  than  those  of  people  on  earth.  They  also  have 
the  human  organs — eyes,  ears,  hands,  feet,  etc., — the 
same  as  men.  And  wherever  they  are  mentioned  or 
referred  to  in  the  Bible,  they  are  spoken  of  as  in  the 
human  form  ;  and  in  some  places  their  faces,  mouths, 
eyes,  ears,  and  hands  are  particularly  mentioned. 

Now  eyes  imply  the  existence  of  some  sort  of  light  as 
the  medium  of  their  exercise  or  use,  just  as  ears  imply 
the  existence  of  some  sort  of  an  atmosphere.  If  there 
were  no  such  thing  as  light,  eyes  would  be  useless  and 
we  should  not  have  them  ;  for  the  Creator  makes  nothing 
without  use  as  an  end.  He  adds  no  useless  appendage 
to  any  creature.  And  having  eyes  we  could  not  see 
10*  H 


114 


HE  A  VEN  RE  VEAL  ED. 


without  some  suitable  medium — some  kind  of  light. 
But  our  organs  of  sense  are  material,  and  therefore 
adapted  to  this  material  world.  With  our  bodily  e5'es 
we  see,  and  with  our  fleshly  hands  we  handle,  material 
things — and  these  alone.  And  the  light  and  heat  of  this 
world,  and  the  sun  from  which  they  emanate,  being  them- 
selves natural,  are  adapted  to  our  natural  or  fleshly 
organs. 

But  everything  in  the  spiritual  world  is  spiritual.  The 
bodies  of  the  angels  are  spiritual  bodies ;  and  we  have 
Paul's  testimony  that  "  there  is  a  natural  body,  and  there 
is  a  spiritual  body."  (l  Cor.  xv.  4.)  And  the  organs  of 
sense  which  the  angels  possess,  must  be  suited  to  the 
spiritual  things  of  their  world,  as  our  bodily  organs  are 
adapted  to  the  material  things  of  this  world.  The  light 
and  heat  of  heaven  must  therefore  be  spiritual,  else  they 
would  not  be  suited  to  the  nature  of  the  angels,  nor  be 
in  harmony  or  homogeneous  with  the  things  of  their 
world. 

And  we  know  what  spiritual  light  is.  It  is  that  which 
illumines  the  understanding — the  light  of  divine  or  spirit- 
ual truth.  When  this  light  dawns  upon  us,  it  brings  day 
to  our  mental  world.  The  light  of  divine  truth  shows 
us  the  path  in  which  we  ought  to  walk — the  path  that 
leads  to  heaven.  And  we  know,  too,  what  spiritual  heat 
is.  It  is  that  which  warms  us  internally  and  spiritually; 
that  which  sets  the  soul  aglow;  that  which  we  feel  when 
the  heart  throbs  with  emotions  of  gratitude  and  love. 
Love  is  spiritual  heat  ;  and  its  effects  in  the  moral  or 
spiritual  realm  are  such  as  correspond  to  the  effects  of 
the  sun's  heat  in  the  material  realm.    It  warms  and 


LIGHT  AND  HEAT  IN  HEAVEN. 


"5 


quickens  and  vivifies.  Hence  it  is  common  to  hear  peo- 
ple who  abound  in  love  towards  others,  called  zuann- 
licarttd. 

And  from  what  other  source  can  spiritual  light  and 
heat  proceed,  than  a  spiritual  sun  ?  And  a  spiritual  sun 
must  be  a  living  sun.  And  what  can  a  living  sun  be, 
but  the  Lord  Jehovah  Himself?  What  but  the  very  sun 
in  whose  bright  beams  of  truth  and  love  the  angels  con- 
tinually rejoice — the  sun  of  the  spiritual  world  ?  And 
can  there  be  any  reasonable  doubt  that  this  sun  is  the 
incarnate  Word — the  Divine  Man  who,  when  on  earth, 
declared:  "I  am  the  light  of  the  world;"  who  is  the 
Enlightener  of  all  minds  and  the  Quickener  of  all  hearts; 
"  in  whom  is  life,"  and  whose  life  "  is  the  light  of  men  "  ? 
(John  i.  4,  9.)  The  spiritual  sun  must  be  to  the  uni- 
verse of  souls,  what  the  natural  sun  is  to  the  realm  of 
matter. 

Consider  again,  that  angels  are  human  beings  in  an 
advanced  stage ; — men  and  women  raised  from  this 
primary  and  rudimental  to  a  higher  or  more  interior 
state  of  existence.  And  if  advanced  to  a  higher  state, 
they  should  possess  a  keener  insight  and  enjoy  a  wider 
range  of  vision  than  we  do.  They  ought  therefore  to 
dwell  in  light  of  superior  brilliancy.  And  so  we  might 
reasonably  expect  that  the  sun  of  heaven  would  be  im- 
mensely brighter  than  the  sun  of  this  world.  We 
should  expect  it  to  surpass  our  sun  in  splendor  by  as 
many  degrees  as  heaven  is  higher  than  earth,  or  as  an- 
gels are  superior  to  men.  Accordingly  Swedenborg 
says : 

"  The  light  of  heaven  in  which  the  angels  dwell  is,  in 


ii6 


HE  A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


respect  to  the  light  of  this  world,  as  the  light  of  the  sun 
at  noonday  to  that  of  a  candle,  which  becomes  invisible 
and  as  nothing  when  the  sun  rises." — A.  C.  1053. 

It  cannot  be  denied,  then,  that  the  seer's  disclosure 
on  this  subject,  is  altogether  reasonable.  Indeed  we 
cannot  conceive  of  an  answer  essentially  different,  that 
would  at  all  satisfy  the  demands  of  reason. 

Then  there  have  been  in  different  ages  and  countries 
many  pious  and  trustworthy  persons,  whose  spiritual 
eyes  have  been  occasionally  opened,  and  whose  re- 
corded experiences  on  such  occasions  agree  entirely 
with  Swedenborg's  statements,  and  may  be  said  therefore 
to  furnish  corroborative  evidence  of  their  truth.  Cases 
like  that,  for  example,  recorded  of  the  grandfather  of 
Heinrich  Jung  Stilling  in  the  latter's  Autobiography 
(p.  22,  Harper's  edition);  and  that  of  Rev.  Wm.  Tenant 
of  Freehold,  New  Jersey,  who  was  apparently  dead  for 
several  days,  and  after  his  resuscitation  described  what 
he  saw  while  in  that  state;  among  other  things  "  an  in- 
effable glory  " — a  "glory  all  unutterable!'  (See  Memoir 
of  Rev.  Wm.  Tenant.)  Dr.  Passavent  says  :  "  Persons 
recovering  from  deep  swoons  and  trances,  frequently 
describe  themselves  as  having  been  in  this  region  of 
light — this  light  of  the  spirit,  if  I  may  so  call  it — this 
palace  of  light  in  which  it  dwells,  which  will  hereafter 
be  its  proper  light;  for  the  physical  or  solar  light  which 
serves  us  while  in  the  flesh,  will  be  no  longer  needed." 
(Quoted  in  Mrs.  Crowe's  Night  Side  of  Nature,  vol.  ii., 
p.  163.)  And  Dr.  H.  Werner  (Doctor  of  Philosophy, 
Stuttgard  and  Tiibingen),  in  his  Guardian  Spirits,  tells  of 
a  seeress  with  whom  he  was  intimate,  and  who,  in  her 


LIGHT  AXD  HE  A  T  IN  HE  A  VEN. 


state  of  trance,  often  spoke  of  seeing  a  bright  Sun  and 
of  being  in  its  light.  On  one  occasion  she  says  :  "  I  see 
the  Sun,  and  these  beings  quite  different  from  men — 
much  more  pure  and  noble — are  not  in  the  Sun,  .  .  . 
but  I  see  them  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Sun.  O,  if  it 
were  so  fair,  so  glorious  on  the  earth  below,  as  here 
where  there  are  no  human  passions,  it  were  then  good 
to  live  there.  This  whole  life  above  consists  of  love. 
Everything  that  is  and  is  done  here,  proceeds  from 
love.  This  principle  makes  all  the  happiness  that  reigns 
here  above."    (p.  30,  'l.  New  York  edition,  1 847.) 

Numerous  facts  like  these  are  accessible,  and  from 
sources  perfectly  authentic.  And  while  they  harmonize 
with,  and  go  to  confirm  the  truth  of,  Swedenborg's 
statements,  they  at  the  same  time  find  in  his  revealings 
their  only  rational  and  philosophical  explanation. 

And  turning  to  the  Bible  we  find  still  further  confir- 
mation of  the  truth  of  his  statements.  We  find  there  a 
record  of  facts  which  it  is  impossible  rationally  to  ex- 
plain upon  any  other  theory  than  that  furnished  by  his 
pneumatology.  Take,  for  example,  the  phenomenon 
recorded  in  Exodus  (24th  chapter),  when  Moses,  Aaron, 
Nadab  and  Abihu  were  called  to  "  come  up  unto  the 
Lord."  It  is  there  said  that  "  the  glory  of  the  Lord 
abode  upon  mount  Sinai ;  .  .  .  and  the  sight  of  the 
glorj'  of  the  Lord  was  like  devouring  fire  on  the  top  of 
the  mount  in  the  eyes  of  the  children  of  Israel."  And 
this,  too,  although  the  Lord's  glory  was  veiled  by  a 
cloud  to  the  multitude  who  stood  gazing  at  the  foot  of 
the  mount.  What  must  have  been  the  appearance  of 
that  glory  to  Moses  who  went  up  into  the  mount  and 


ii8 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


the  cloud  !  No  wonder  that  when  he  came  down,  "the 
skin  of  his  face  shone"  as  the  record  says. 

Then  we  read  m  the  gospel  by  Matthew  (17th  chap- 
ter) :  "  And  after  six  days  Jesus  taketh  with  him  Peter, 
James  and  John  his  brother,  and  bringeth  them  up  into 
a  high  mountain  apart,  and  was  transfigured  before 
them  ;  and  his  face  did  shine  as  the  sun,  and  his  rai- 
ment was  white  as  the  light.  And  behold  there  ap- 
peared unto  them  Moses  and  Elias  talking  with  Him. 
.  .  .  And  as  they  came  down  from  the  mountain,  Jesus 
charged  them,  saying,  Tell  the  vision  to  no  man  until 
the  Son  of  Man  be  risen  again  from  the  dead."  This  is 
the  way  Jesus  appeared  to  the  disciples  when  their  spir- 
itual eyes  were  opened:  "his  face  did  shine  as  the 
sun."  That  it  was  with  their  spiritual  and  not  with 
their  natural  eyes  that  the  disciples  saw  Jesus  on  that 
occasion,  is  evident;  1st,  from  the  fact  that  they  saw 
Moses  and  Elias  at  the  same  time ;  and  these  persons, 
being  spirits  and  long  time  dwellers  in  the  spiritual 
world,  could  not  be  seen  by  any  eyes  but  those  of  the 
spirit;  and  2d,  from  the  Lord's  own  words,  "Tell  the 
vision  to  no  man,"  etc.  A  vision  is  a  supernatural  ap- 
pearance— something  seen  with  the  spiritual  and  not 
with  the  natural  eyes. 

Again,  the  seer  of  Patmos  tells  us  that,  "being  in  the 
spirit  on  the  Lord's  day,"  he  heard  behind  him  a  great 
voice,  "  saying  :  I  am  Alpha  and  Omega,  the  First  and 
the  Last."  And  turning  to  see  whence  the  voice  came, 
he  says  :  "  I  saw  seven  golden  candlesticks  ;  and  in  the 
midst  of  the  seven  candlesticks,  one  like  unto  the  Son 
of  Man  .  .  .  and  his  countenance  was  as  tlic  sun  shineth 


LIGHT  AND  HE  A  T  IN  HE  A  VEN. 


119 


in  his  strength."  (Rev.  i.  10,  13,  16.)  To  be  "in  the 
spirit,"  is  to  be  in  an  exalted  spiritual  state — in  a  state 
to  see  as  those  do  who  are  in  the  spiritual  world,  or 
who  have  their  spiritual  eyes  opened. 

Then  there  is  the  testimony  of  Paul  in  his  memorable 
speech  before  king  Agrippa  (and  repeated  elsewhere), 
which  perfectly  agrees  with,  and  finds  a  rational  explan- 
ation in,  Swedenborg's  disclosures.  "  Whereupon,"  says 
the  apostle,  "  as  I  was  going  to  Damascus,  with  author- 
ity and  commission  from  the  chief  priests,  at  mid-day,  O 
king,  I  saw  in  the  way  a  light  from  heaven  above  the 
brightness  of  the  sun,  shining  round  about  me  and  them 
that  journeyed  with  me.  And  when  we  were  all  fallen 
to  the  earth,  I  heard  a  voice  speaking  unto  me,  and  say- 
ing in  the  Hebrew  tongue,  Saul,  Saul,  why  persecutest 
thou  mc  ?  .  .  .  And  I  said,  Who  art  thou,  Lord  ?  And 
He  said,  I  am  Jesus  whom  thou  persecutest."  (Acts  xxvi. 
12,  13.)  Observe  that  the  apostle  beheld  this  dazzling 
brightness  at  uiid-day,  and  says  that  it  exceeded  the 
brightness  of  the  sun.  The  light  was  overpowering  in 
its  splendor  It  was  more  than  he  and  his  fellow  trav- 
ellers could  endure ;  and  they  fell  prostrate  on  the 
earth. 

Now  what  was  the  nature  of  that  light?  and  to  what 
realm  did  it  belong,  the  natural  or  the  spiritual  ?  Cer- 
tainly not  to  the  natural  ;  for  what  light  in  the  realm  of 
nature  is  so  overpowering  as  that  was  ?  What  natural 
light  is  above  that  of  the  sun  at  noonday?  And  why 
not  seen  by  all  the  people  in  that  region  round  about,  if 
it  were  merely  natural  light  ?  No :  The  light  which 
Paul  and  his  companions  beheld  on  that  occasion,  was 


I20 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


from  the  Sun  of  the  spiritual  world — their  spiritual  sight 
being  suddenly  and  providentially  opened  to  enable 
them  to  see  it.  And  if  the  light  of  that  Sun  is,  as  Swe- 
denborg  says,  "a  thousand  times  greater  than  that  of 
the  sun  of  this  world,"  no  wonder  that  they  all  fell  to 
the  earth,  and  that  Paul  himself  "  could  not  see  for 
the  glory  of  that  light"  (Acts  xxii.  li),  and  remained 
"three  days  without  sight."  (ix.  9.)  Who  could  stand 
before  such  dazzling  brightness,  if  it  burst  suddenly  upon 
him?  Observe  further,  that,  within  that  overwhelming 
blaze  was  a  person — the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  himself — from 
whom  came  the  words  in  Hebrew,  "  Saul,  Saul,  why 
persecutest  thou  me  ?  "  Observe,  also,  that  this  great 
light  burst  upon  them  suddenly,  and  as  suddenly  van- 
ished ;  and  the  apostle  himself  called  it  "  a  light  from 
heaven." 

And  thus  we  find  that  remarkable  experience  of  Paul, 
producing  what  is  commonly  called  his  miraculous  con- 
version, to  be  in  perfect  agreement  with  .Swedenborg's 
disclosures  ;  and  while  furnishing  additional  confirmation 
of  their  truth,  receiving  from  them  at  the  same  time  an 
easy  and  philosophical  explanation.  And  can  you  find 
in  any  of  the  old  theologies — can  you  find  anyiuJiere  else 
but  in  Swedenborg's  pneumatology,  a  rational  explana- 
tion of  that  memorable  occurrence  ? 

And  that  it  is  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  or  Jehovah  God, 
who  is  the  Sun  of  the  spiritual  world,  is  plain  from  many 
passages  of  Scripture.  Thus  the  inspired  Psalmist  says: 
"Jehovah  God  is  a  sun  and  shield."  "Jehovah  cover- 
eth  Himself  with  light  as  with  a  garment."  And  Isaiah 
says:  "Jehovah  shall  be  unto  thee  an  everlasting  light." 


LIGHT  Ai\D  HEAT  IN  HEAVEN. 


121 


And  the  apostle  John :  "  God  is  light,"  and  "  God  is 
love" — for.love  is  spiritual  heat  whence  comes  spiritual 
light.  And  of  that  city  which  the  seer  of  Patmos  be- 
held in  vision  "  coming  down  from  God  out  of  heaven," 
it  is  said  "  the  glory  of  God  did  lighten  it,  and  the  Lamb 
is  the  light  thereof"  And  "  there  shall  be  no  night 
there ;  ...  for  the  Lord  God  giveth  them  light."  And 
the  Lord  when  on  earth  proclaimed  Himself  "  the  light 
of  the  world."  And  John  calls  Him  "the  Word" 
which  was  "  in  the  beginning  with  God,  and  is  God  " — • 
"  the  true  light  which  lighteth  every  man."  He  is  the 
enlightener  of  all  souls,  the  Sun  of  the  moral  universe. 

Thus  do  reason,  Scripture,  the  recorded  experiences 
of  gifted  seers  and  of  devout  men  in  all  ages,  unite  in 
attestation  of  the  truth  of  Swedenborg's  revelation  con- 
cerning the  Sun  of  the  spiritual  world,  and  the  nature 
of  the  light  and  heat  thence  proceeding.  And  there  is 
no  conflict  in  the  testimony  rendered,  but  perfect  agree- 
ment among  all  these  witnesses.  And  the  witnesses, 
we  observe,  are  quite  independent  of  each  other.  The 
conclusion  is,  therefore,  inevitable.  For  what  the  Bible 
declares,  and  reason  approves,  and  the  experience  of 
prophets  and  seers  in  all  ages  confirms,  must  be  true 
beyond  question. 

Nor  is  the  evidence  exhausted  yet.  As  we  prosecute 
our  inquiry  into  the  laws  and  phenomena  of  the  spiritual 
world,  we  shall  find  additional  proof  accumulating  at 
every  step.  We  shall  find  this  central  fact  of  the  exist- 
ence of  a  spiritual  Sun,  connecting  itself  as  intimately 
with  the  other  facts  and  phenomena  of  the  spiritual 
world,  as  the  fact  of  the  natural  sun's  existence  connects 


122 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


itself  with  the  other  facts  and  phenomena  of  our  ter- 
restrial world, — with  the  motion  of  the  planets,  the 
existence  and  color  of  the  clouds,  the  verdure  of  the 
fields,  the  aspects  of  the  landscape,  the  countless  tints 
of  the  violet  and  the  rose.  These  all  presuppose  and 
depend  wholly  upon  the  sun,  and  could  not  exist  with- 
out it. 


X. 

PRACTICAL  TENDENCY  OF  THIS  DISCLOSURE. 

GRANT  that  what  Swcdenborg  tells  us  about  the 
Sun  in  the  angelic  heavens  be  true,  what  then  ? 
Is  the  disclosure  one  of  any  practical  value?  Is  it  cal- 
culated to  improve  the  character  of  those  who  accept  it, 
or  to  quicken  their  endeavors  after  righteousness  ?  For 
if  it  can  be  shown  that  the  legitimate  tendency  of  any 
revealed  fact  or  law  is  good  and  wholesome,  that  it 
furnishes  food  or  stimulus  to  the  better  part  of  our  nature, 
and  tends  to  exalt  and  ennoble  the  character  of  the  be- 
liever, that  is  the  strongest  possible  evidence  of  its  truth. 
But  if,  on  the  other  hand,  its  obvious  tendency  is  per- 
nicious— if  it  is  calculated  to  exert  a  debasing  influence 
on  the  character,  you  can  have  no  stronger  evidence  that 
the  alleged  revelation  is  false.  "  For  every  tree  is  known 
by  his  own  fruit ;  for  of  thorns  men  do  not  gather  figs, 
nor  of  a  bramble  bush  gather  they  grapes."  (Luke  vi. 
44.)  No  more  can  the  fruits  of  righteousness  be  the 
legitimate  product  of  false  teaching  or  a  spurious  reve- 


TENDENCY  OF  THIS  DISCLOSURE. 


123 


lation.  By  its  obvious  practical  tendency,  you  may  know 
whether  the  alleged  revelation  be  true  or  false.  Let  us 
apply  this  test  to  Swedenborg's  disclosures  concerning 
the  spiritual  Sun. 

It  was  said  in  the  last  chapter,  and  shown  by  extracts 
from  the  seer's  writings,  that  the  spiritual  Sun  does  not 
appear  the  same  to  all  the  angels.  Its  appearance  is  al- 
ways in  correspondence  with  the  state  of  the  beholder. 
To  those  of  the  highest  heaven,  who  receive  the  light 
of  divine  wisdom  and  the  warmth  of  divine  love  in  larg- 
est measure,  the  Lord  appears  most  glorious  even  to  their 
external  vision.  He  appears  as  a  sun  warm  and  bright 
according  to  their  internal  reception  of  his  light  and  life. 
To  those  of  a  lower  heaven  who  receive  his  love  and 
wisdom  in  an  inferior  degree,  He  appears  less  glorious 
— comparatively  as  a  moon.  While  to  those  not  in 
heaven,  whose  lives  are  not  in  harmony  with  its  laws, 
and  in  whose  hearts  is  none  of  God's  unselfish  love,  but 
the  supreme  love  of  self  instead,  the  sun  of  heaven  docs 
not  appear  at  all.  Their  state  is,  therefore,  one  of  com- 
parative cold,  darkness  and  night.  Hence  the  meaning 
of  that  "  outer  darkness  "  into  which  the  wicked  are  said 
to  be  cast ;  for  they  have  shut  the  door  of  their  souls 
against  the  Sun  of  righteousness,  and  therefore  the  my- 
riads of  interesting  and  beautiful  things  which  that  Sun 
reveals  to  the'angels,  are  invisible  to  them. 

Now  the  different  angelic  heavens  are  neither  more 
nor  less  than  different  states  of  human  life — all  good, 
but  some  superior  to  others.  And  so,  too,  the  different 
kinds  and  degrees  of  evil  in  the  wicked,  are  what  neces- 
sitate the  different  hells.    The  higher  states  of  angelic 


124 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


life,  are  such  as  are  in  accord  with  the  higher  laws  of 
the  soul,  or  with  the  truths  of  the  spiritual  and  celestial 
senses  of  the  Word. 

And  every  man,  when  he  passes  into  the  spiritual 
world,  takes  his  own  character  with  him.  He  goes 
there  precisely  the  same  individual  that  he  was  inter- 
nally while  living  in  the  flesh.  His  inner  and  spiritual 
life  as  to  all  its  predominant  characteristics,  remains. 
And  the  process  of  forming  this  inner  life,  is  a  process 
of  clarifying  or  obscuring  the  spiritual  vision — of  im- 
proving or  impairing  the  soul's  eyesight.  It  is  a  proc- 
ess by  which  we  become  qualified  to  enjoy  the  blessed 
light  and  warmth  of  the  Sun  of  heaven,  or  incapacitated 
for  beholding  his  face  and  rejoicing  in  his  kindling 
beams. 

Note  what  this  process  is,  or  the  manner  of  its  pro- 
cedure. As  to  our  spirits  we  are  always  in  the  spiritual 
world,  though  at  present  unconscious  of  the  fact.  And 
every  law  of  the  spirit's  life — every  ray  of  spiritual  truth 
that  we  receive — is  a  beam  from  the  spiritual  Sun.  And 
as  we  obey  the  truth  we  have  learned,  we  come  to  ex- 
perience a  positive  delight  in  it.  The  vital  element  in 
truth  is  the  Lord's  love ;  and  it  is  this  which  causes  the 
delight.  By  religious  obedience  to  the  truth,  our  hearts 
become  warmed  and  expanded  and  more  and  more  re- 
ceptive of  this  vital  element ;  the  range  <5f  our  spiritual 
vision  is  extended,  and  we  become  receptive  of  more 
and  still  higher  truth.  With  every  act  of  self-denial 
prompted  by  religious  principle,  there  comes  as  a  rich 
reward  an  increased  desire  for  more  and  higher  truth, 
and  an  increased  capacity  for  receiving  it.    And  so  by 


TENDENCY  OF  THIS  DISCLOSURE. 


125 


religiously //z'///^  the  truth,  we  come  more  and  more  into 
the  light  and  love  and  joy  of  it.  As  saith  the  Lord : 
"  He  that  docth  truth  cometh  to  the  light." 

In  this  and  in  no  other  way  can  our  souls  be  prepared 
for  the  light  by  which  the  angels  see.  If  we  seek  and 
love  and  reverently  follow  the  light  of  heavenly  truth 
while  here  on  earth,  we  shall  be  prepared  to  rejoice  in 
the  glad  beams  of  heaven's  Sun  when  we  enter  the 
other  world.  But  if,  on  the  contrary,  we  care  nothing 
about  it,  take  no  delight  in  it,  turn  our  thoughts  away 
from  it,  and  walk  not  according  to  it,  we  shall  gradually 
incapacitate  ourselves  for  receiving  it.  Every  infringe- 
ment of  known  spiritual  laws,  is  an  injury  to  the  soul's 
eyesight.  And  if  disobedience  or  neglect  be  persisted 
in,  we  shall  be  unable  to  bear  the  light  of  the  spiritual 
Sun  in  the  great  Hereafter.  We  shall  hate  and  flee  from 
it,  and  choose  instead  the  "  outer  darkness,"  as  owls  and 
bats  shun  the  light  of  day,  and  prefer  instead  the  shades 
of  night.  Agreeable  to  the  Lord's  own  words :  "  He 
that  doeth  evil  hateth  the  light,  neither  cometh  to  the 
light,  lest  his  deeds  should  be  reproved."  And  what 
darkness  is  so  dreadful  as  that  which  results  from  the 
loss  of  the  moral  or  spiritual  eyesight! — the  loss  of  all 
desire  for  the  true  light,  and  even  of  the  capacity  to  re- 
ceive or  apprehend  it!  "  If,  therefore,  the  light  that  is 
in  thee  be  darkness,  how  great  is  that  darkness  !  "  saith 
the  Lord. 

Thus  the  practical  tendency  of  this  disclosure  is  seen 
to  be  good  and  wholesome.  For  it  teaches  that  our 
spiritual  vision  while  we  are  yet  in  the  flesh,  is  becom- 
ing dimmed  or  clarified  according  to  our  degree  of  af- 


126 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


fection  for  the  truth  and  our  fidelity  in  obeying  its  be- 
hests. And  it  warns  us  not  to  forget  or  transgress  the 
Divine  commands,  under  penalty  of  dimming  or  de- 
stroying our  spirit's  eyesight,  and  thus  preparing  our- 
selves for  the  "  outer  darkness."  Its  tendency  therefore 
is,  to  make  us  watchful  against  the  indulgence  of  any 
known  evil,  and  to  stimulate  our  desire  to  learn  and 
practice  the  laws  of  the  heavenly  life ;  for  it  is  in  this 
way  only  that  we  can  become  qualified  to  behold  and 
rejoice  in  the  beams  of  heaven's  bright  Sun. 

Then  see  how  this  disclosure  concerning  the  nature 
of  heavenly  light  and  heat,  helps  us  in  the  interpretation 
of  the  Bible  ;  for  there  is,  as  we  should  expect,  an  inti- 
mate connection  between  the  spiritual  sense  of  the  Word 
as  revealed  through  Swedenborg.and  his  disclosures  con- 
cerning the  spiritual  world. 

In  its  natural  or  literal  sense  the  Bible  appears  to 
treat  much  of  natural  things  ; — of  the  earth  and  clouds, 
winds  and  waters ;  of  rocks,  trees  and  mountains — sun, 
moon  and  stars.  And  it  was  once  regarded  as  the  very 
highest  authority  in  settling  questions  of  natural  science. 
But  latterly  a  great  change  in  this  respect  has  come 
over  the  mind  of  Christendom.  Many  of  the  beliefs 
prevalent  in  the  days  of  Galileo,  have  been  discarded  by 
every  religious  sect.  Many  of  the  deepest  thinkers  of 
our  day  have  reached  the  conclusion  that  the  Bible  was 
never  meant  to  teach  us  about  natural  but  only  about 
spiritual  things ;  that,  rightly  understood,  it  will  be 
found  to  treat  exclusively  of  God,  the  soul  and  things 
belonging  to  the  soul's  appropriate  realm  ;  that  it  is,  and 
was  meant  to  be,  a  revelation  not  of  natural  but  of  spir- 


TENDENCY  OF  THIS  DISCLOSURE. 


127 


itual  truth — truth  suited  to  the  wants  of  our  higher  na- 
ture, and  is  therefore  to  be  spiritually  interpreted.  And 
when  it  speaks  in  the  letter  of  things  belonging  to  the 
natural  realm,  in  its  higher  and  true  sense  it  speaks  of 
the  corresponding  things  within  or  above  nature — things 
in  the  realm  of  spirit. 

For  example :  When  the  Bible  speaks  of  man,  it 
means  the  inner  and  real  man — not  the  material  and 
perishable,  but  the  spiritual  and  immortal  part.  When 
it  speaks  of  the  resurrection,  it  means  the  resurrection 
not  of  the  material  body,  but  of  the  spiritual — -the  real 
individual  temporarily  enshrined  in  matter.  When  it 
speaks  of  a  second  birth,  it  refers  not  to  a  natural  or 
carnal  birth,  but  to  the  birth  of  the  soul  into  the  king- 
dom of  heaven.  When  it  speaks  of  heaven  and  hell,  it 
means  no  natural  localities  such  as  are  referred  to  by 
these  terms  taken  in  their  natural  sense,  but  certain 
states  of  the  soul — one,  exalted  and  blissful,  the  other, 
degraded  and  miserable.  When  it  speaks  of  the  com- 
ing of  the  Lord,  it  means  no  outward  coming  cogniza- 
ble by  the  eye  of  sense,  but  an  inward  and  spiritual 
coming — a  coming  of  his  own  truth  and  love  to  the  un- 
derstandings and  hearts  of  men.  When  it  speaks  of 
light  and  heat,  it  means  truth  and  love  which  are  spirit- 
ual light  and  heat  to  which  the  natural  correspond. 

If,  then,  it  be  true,  as  the  deepest  thinkers  are  every- 
where beginning  to  see  and  acknowledge,  that  the  Bible 
was  not  given  to  teach  us  natural  but  spiritual  truth,  it 
is  clear  enough  that  it  must  be  spiritually  interpreted. 
Accordingly  when  it  speaks  of  the  sun  and  of  light,  we 
are  to  understand  that,  in  its  higher  and  true  sense,  the 


128 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


spiritual  Sun  and  spiritual  light  are  what  is  meant.  Take 
a  few  texts  for  illustration.  Can  any  one  doubt  that 
spiritual  light,  or  divine  truth  which  illumines  the  under- 
standing, is  what  is  meant  in  passages  like  the  follow- 
ing ? 

"  Jesus  said,  I  am  the  UgJit  of  the  world ;  he  that  fol- 
loweth  me  shall  not  walk  in  darkness,  but  shall  have  the 
light  of  life."  "  Yet  a  little  while  is  the  light  with  you. 
Walk  while  ye  have  the  light,  lest  darkness  come  upon 
you."  "  While  ye  have  the  light  believe  in  the  light,  that 
ye  may  be  the  children  of  light."  "  I  am  come  a  light 
into  the  world,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  me  should 
not  abide  in  darkness."  "  Light  is  come  into  the  world, 
but  men  love  darkness  rather  than  light  because  their 
deeds  are  evil."  "  H-e  [the  incarnate  Word]  was  the 
true  light  which  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into 
the  world."  "  God  is  light,  and  in  Him  is  no  darkness 
at  all." 

Yes :  The  light  of  divine  truth  which  is  spiritual,  is 
what  enlightens  the  souls  of  men  while  they  tabernacle 
in  the  flesh.  But  it  cannot  enlighten  those  who,  because 
of  their  evil  loves  and  their  unwillingness  to  see  and 
abandon  them,  shut  their  eyes  against  it.  "  For  every 
one  that  doeth  evil,  hateth  the  light,  neither  cometh  to 
the  light,  lest  his  deeds  should  be  reproved." 

But  spiritual  light  must  emanate  from  a  spiritual  lumi- 
nary, as  surely  as  natural  light  must  come  from  some 
natural  luminary.  And  what  can  that  luminary  be  but 
the  Lord  Himself  who  is  the  enlightener  of  all  minds, 
and  who,  we  arc  assured  by  Swedenborg,  appears  before 


TENDEiYCY  OF  THIS  DISCLOSURE. 


129 


the  eyes  of  the  angels  in  greater  or  less  brilliancy  ac- 
cording to  their  states  of  receptivity  of  his  wisdom  and 
love — his  appearance  being  in  exact  correspondence  with 
the  states  of  the  beholders.  To  the  highest  angels  whose 
love  is  purest  and  most  ardent,  He  appears  as  a  sun  of 
indescribable  brilliancy  ;  and  to  those  in  lower  states,  or 
whose. love  is  less  intense,  He  appears  comparatively  as 
a  moon.  Therefore  when  the  Bible  speaks  of  the  sun 
and  moon,  we  are  to  think  of  something  above  the  nat- 
ural luminaries  so  named — of  the  spiritual  sun  and  moon 
to  which  the  natural  correspond. 

This  will  help  us  to  understand  the  meaning  of  a  pas- 
sage of  Scripture  which,  being  literally  interpreted,  has 
been  the  occasion  of  considerable  excitement  and  alarm 
at  different  periods  of  the  church.  We  refer  to  that  in 
Matthew  (ch.  xxiv. — repeated  in  Mark  xiii.  and  Luke 
xxi.),  where,  after  foretelling  the  fearful  trials — the  wars, 
famines,  pestilences,  etc.  (all  spiritual,  according  to  the 
true  interpretation),  which  the  church  would  be  called 
to  encounter  before  the  Lord's  second  appearing,  it  is 
added,  as  if  this  were  the  last  crowning  event  in  the 
grand  drama  :  "  Immediately  after  the  tribulation  of  those 
days,  the  sun  shall  be  darkened,  and  the  moon  shall  not 
give  her  light,  and  the  stars  shall  fall  from  heaven.  .  .  . 
And  then  shall  appear  the  sign  of  the  Son  of  Man  in 
heaven." 

Christians  have  generally  given  to  this  prophetic  an- 
nouncement a  sensuous  interpretation.  But  here  as 
everywhere  else  in  his  Word,  the  Lord  refers  to  spiritual 
things.  He  is  speaking  not  of  the  natural  sun,  moon, 
and  stars,  but  of  the  spiritual  things  to  which  these 
I 


130 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


natural  luminaries  correspond.  And  since  we  are,  as  to 
our  spirits,  now  and  always  in  the  spiritual  world,  there- 
fore we  are  ever  under  the  influence  of  the  spiritual  Sun. 
We  receive  from  it  all  our  spiritual  light  and  warmth. 
But  its  light  does  not  appear  to  our  outward  sense  as 
light  (as  it  does  to  the  eyes  of  angels),  but  manifests 
itself  by  a  certain  internal  illumination — that  kind  of 
enlightenment  which  spiritual  truth,  when  received,  fur- 
nishes to  the  understanding.  Nor  is  its  heat  sensibly 
perceived  by  us  as  heat,  but  manifests  itself  by  a  certain 
warmth  of  feeling,  or  a  kindling  in  the  heart  of  the 
emotion  of  love — love  of  whatever  is  just,  sincere,  good 
and  true.  Thus  do  the  beams  of  the  spiritual  Sun  reach 
and  affect  the  spirits  of  people  yet  in  the  flesh.  But 
when  may  that  Sun  be  said  to  be  darkened  ? 

The  natural  sun  always  shines  with  undiminished 
splendor.  Yet  he  undergoes  apparent  changes.  Some- 
times he  is  wholly  or  partially  eclipsed.  Sometimes  he 
is  obscured  by  the  vapor  and  smoke  in  the  earth's  atmos- 
phere. He  sinks  beneath  the  horizon,  and  his  face  is 
hidden  from  our  view.  And  in  familiar  language  all 
such  changes  are  predicated  of  the  sun  itself  When 
suffering  an  eclipse,  we  say  the  sun  is  darkened.  Seen 
through  mist,  dust,  or  smoke,  we  say  the  sun  is  pale, 
dim,  or  red.  When  his  face  appears  in  the  east,  we  say 
he  is  rising  ;  and  when,  again,  he  approaches  the  western 
horizon,  we  say  he  is  going  doivn.  All  such  language, 
we  know,  expresses  not  the  absolute  but  only  the  ap- 
parent truth.  For  the  sun  itself  does  not  change.  His 
apparent  changes  in  respect  to  light,  heat,  and  diurnal 
motion,  are  all  caused  by  our  atmospheric  conditions 


TENDENCY  OF  THIS  DISCLOSURE. 


and  contents,  and  the  motion  of  the  earth  on  its 
axis. 

Carrying  this  thought  along  with  us  (and  it  is  one  of 
great  importance  to  every  Bible  student),  we  can  under- 
stand why  changes  are  predicated  of  the  spiritual  Sun 
(the  Lord),  when  in  strictness  of  language  that  Sun  is 
unchangeable.  We  can  see  that  all  apparent  changes 
in  Him  are  purely  subjective — caused  by  changes  in  the 
states  of  recipient  subjects.  To  the  angels  of  the  high- 
est heaven  the  Lord  appears  as  a  sun,  because  they  re- 
ceive his  love  in  the  greatest  fulness — his  appearance 
being  in  correspondence  with  their  state  of  life.  There- 
fore when  the  principle  of  charity  or  true  neighborly 
love  ceases  to  be  living  and  operative  in  the  church, 
then,  in  relation  to  the  church,  the  Sun  of  heaven  is 
darkened. 

And  to  the  angels  of  a  lower  heaven  who  receive  the 
Lord's  love  in  an  inferior  degree,  but  yet  are  in  the 
truths  of  faith.  He  appears  comparatively  as  a  moon. 
Accordingly  when  the  Word  is  misunderstood  and  fal- 
sified by  the  church,  when  faith  is  in  eclipse  and  falsi- 
ties are  taught  and  accepted  for  truths,  then,  in  relation 
to  the  church,  the  moon  does  not  give  her  light.  And 
when  the  knowledges  of  genuine  good  and  truth  have 
so  far  faded  out  from  the  minds  of  professing  Christians 
that  they  no  longer  know  what  spiritual  good  and  spir- 
itual truth  are,  then,  in  relation  to  the  church,  the  stars 
have  fallen  from  heaven. 

Now  look  at  Christendom  as  it  was  prior  to  the 
memorable  year  1757.  Its  character  stands  recorded 
on  the  page  of  history.    Look  at  it — and  what  do  we 


132 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


see?  That  celestial  principle  of  love  to  the  Lord  and 
the  neighbor  which  shone  conspicuously  in  the  early- 
days  of  the  church,  making  her  members  of  one  heart 
and  mind  and  binding  them  all  together  in  the  bonds 
of  a  beautiful  brotherhood — that  principle  had  died  out 
or  departed  from  the  church.  And  there  was  no  vital 
faith  in  the  divinity  of  the  Lord,  the  divinity  of  the 
Word,  or  in  a  life  after  death.  The  Scripture  had  be- 
come falsified  on  every  fundamental  doctrine,  and  spir- 
itual darkness  brooded  over  all  Christendom.  Even  the 
knowledges  of  spiritual  good  and  truth  were  lost  to  the 
great  body  of  the  church.  As  fixed  and  guiding  prin- 
ciples they  were  no  more.  They  had  fallen  from  their 
heavenly  places  in  men's  minds.  And  thus  was  fulfilled 
in  relation  to  the  cluirch — really  and  perfectly  fulfilled  ac- 
cording to  its  spiritual  and  true  meaning — this  pro- 
phetic declaration :  "  The  sun  shall  be  darkened,  and 
the  moon  shall  not  give  her  light,  and  the  stars  shall 
fall  from  heaven." 

But  at  this  juncture — amid  the  general  darkness  that 
enveloped  the  church — amid  the  clouds  of  ignorance 
and  error  and  doubt  and  denial  which  had  extinguished 
in  the  minds  of  nominal  Christians  all  the  heavenly 
luminaries,  a  glorious  light  breaks  forth  to  rejoice  and 
save  a  sinking  world.  From  within  or  above  the  cloud 
of  the  letter — out  from  the  living  soul  of  Scripture — out 
from  that  world  where  angels  dwell,  long  clouded  and 
obscured,  the  spiritual  Sun  pours  kindling  beams  on  a 
benighted  church.  And  thus  the  Lord  of  life  appears 
all  glorious  in  the  clouds,  agreeable  to  his  own  pro- 
phetic declaration :  "  And  then  shall  ye  see  the  Son 


TENDENCY  OF  THIS  DISCLOSURE. 


of  Man  coming  in  the  clouds,  with  power  and  great 
glory." 

And  mark  the  signs  of  this  Second  Coming — the  con- 
sequences of  this  newly  risen  Sun.  Mark  how  its  pierc- 
ing beams  are  dispelling  the  old  darkness ! — how  they 
have  already  pervaded  with  their  light  and  life  nearly 
every  department  of  human  thought!  Under  their 
quickening  influence  the  human  intellect  has  every- 
where burst  its  old  swathing-bands,  and  leaped  forth 
with  unprecedented  vigor.  And  on  the  natural  plane 
what  a  magnificent  harvest  already  begins  to  wave ! 
Science,  literature,  philosophy,  art,  industry,  politics, 
morals  and  religion  have  all  begun  to  feel  the  influence 
of  the  Second  Coming.  Old  things  are  everywhere 
passing  away,  and  all  things  are  being  made  new.  All 
the  forms  of  human  thought  prevalent  a  century  ago, 
are  changed  or  changing.  Old  religious  dogmas,  old 
systems  of  philosophy,  old  forms  of  government,  old 
methods  of  education,  old  theories  of  medicine,  old  in- 
dustrial processes,  old  ideas  on  all  subjects,  are  being 
continually  summoned  to  judgment.  And  one  by  one 
they  are  beginning  to  retire  before  the  waxing  light  of 
truth,  as  creatures  of  the  night  retire  before  the  opening 
day.  In  the  general  enlightenment  and  progress  of 
mankind  during  the  last  hundred  years,  on  the  natural 
plane  of  thought  and  action,  do  we  not  witness  some- 
thing like  a  fulfillment  of  the  prophecy  ?  "  For  as  the 
lightning  cometh  out  of  the  east,  and  shineth  even  unto 
the  west,  so  shall  also  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  Man 
be." 

We  thus  see  that  the  great  Swede's  disclosure  con- 
12 


134 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


cerning  light  and  heat  in  heaven,  and  their  origin,  while 
perfectly  reasonable  in  itself,  accords  well  with  the  teach- 
ings of  Scripture,  is  most  beneficent  in  its  practical  ten- 
dency, and  helps  us  to  a  truer  and  more  rational  inter- 
pretation of  some  portions  of  the  written  Word.  Can- 
did and  thoughtful  minds  will  not  reject  the  concurrent 
testimony  of  all  these  witnesses. 


XI. 

ENVIRONMENT  IN  HEAVEN,  AND  WHAT  DETER- 
MINES IT. 

HAVE  the  angels  an  outward  or  phenomenal  world 
as  people  on  earth  have  ?  If  so,  what  is  its  gen- 
eral character  or  aspect,  and  what  determines  it?  Since 
they  possess  the  human  organs,  eyes  to  see  and  hands 
to  handle  things,  we  should  expect  there  would  be  ob- 
jects to  be  seen  and  handled.  We  cannot  conceive  of 
their  existing  as  human  beings  without  an  earth  to 
stand  and  walk  upon  ;  nor  can  we  conceive  of  their 
being  in  a  blissful  state  with  no  kind  of  objective  world, 
and  compelled  to  gaze  forever  on  mere  emptiness.  But 
what  answer  does  Swedenborg  give  to  the  above  ques- 
tions ?    Briefly  this : 

That  the  angels  live  upon  a  substantial  earth  (not 
material),  and  are  surrounded  by  innumerable  objects 
that  are  far  more  beautiful  and  perfect  than  any  that  ex- 
ist on  earth — but  all  spiritual.    And  their  senses  being 


ENVIRONMENT  IN  HEAVEN. 


far  more  acute  than  ours,  and  the  light  in  which  they 
dwell  far  more  brilliant,  they  see  the  objects  in  their 
world  with  greater  distinctness  than  we  see  those  in 
ours.  And  the  law  which  determines  the  aspect  of  their 
outward  world,  is  the  same  as  that  according  to  which 
the  Sacred  Scripture  is  written — the  same  law  that  al- 
ways governs  in  the  descent  of  the  Divine  love  and  wis- 
dom to  ultimates — the  law  of  correspondence  between 
the  internal  and  external,  or  between  cause  and  effect. 
Spirit  tends  forever  to  clothe  itself  in  correspondential 
forms.  It  cannot  become  clothed  in  any  other.  God 
cannot  speak  or  reveal  Himself  to  finite  beings,  except 
according  to  correspondence.  He  cannot  create,  and 
so  exhibit  his  love  and  wisdom  to  the  senses  of  men, 
except  according  to  the  same  law.  And  the  objects 
which  appear  in  heaven,  exist  there  by  virtue  of  an  in- 
flux from  the  Divine  into  the  minds  of  the  angels,  and 
through  them  into  their  outward  or  phenomenal  world. 
The  character  of  their  outer  is  therefore  determined  by 
that  of  their  inner  world.  The  former  is  the  visible 
representation  of  the  latter.  The  things  which  greet 
their  senses  are  the  creations,  and  therefore  the  corre- 
spondential forms,  of  their  own  affections  and  thoughts. 
Thus  their  outward  world  corresponds  in  all  respects  to 
the  world  within  them.  Every  active  principle  in  their 
minds  is  pictorially  represented  to  the  outward  sense, 
and  under  a  form  perfectly  correspondent.  The  objects 
round  about  them,  therefore,  are  so  many  mirrors,  as  it 
were,  reflecting  with  mathematical  precision  the  world 
of  thought,  affection  and  purpose  within  them.  But  we 
will  give  Swedenborg's  report  on  this  subject  in  his  own 


136 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


language.  The  following  extracts  contain  the  substance 
of  it: 

"  The  nature  of  the  objects  which  appear  to  the  angels 
in  heaven  cannot  be  described  in  few  words.  For  the 
most  part  they  are  like  the  things  on  earth,  but  in  form 
more  perfect  and  in  number  more  abundant.  That  such 
things  exist  in  heaven,  is  evident  from  those  seen  by 
the  prophets  [as  by  Ezekiel,  Chap,  xl.-xlviii. ;  by 
Daniel,  Chap,  vii.-xii. ;  by  John,  Rev.,  from  first  to 
last  chapter].  They  saw  such  things  when  they  were 
in  the  spirit  and  heaven  was  opened  to  them  ;  and  heaven 
is  said  to  be  opened  when  the  interior  sight  which  is 
that  of  a  man's  spirit,  is  opened.  For  the  things  in 
heaven  cannot  be  seen  with  the  bodily  eyes,  but  with 
the  eyes  of  the  spirit." — H.  H.  n.  171. 

"  Whenever  it  has  been  granted  me  to  be  in  company 
with  angels,  the  things  of  heaven  have  appeared  to  me 
exactly  like  those  in  the  world, — so  perceptibly  indeed, 
that  I  knew  not  but  that  I  was  in  the  world,  and  in  the 
palace  of  a  king  there.  .  .  .  Since  all  things  which  cor- 
respond to  the  interiors  [of  the  angels]  also  represent 
them,  therefore  they  are  called  representatives.  And 
since  they  vary  according  to  the  state  of  the  interiors 
with  the  angels,  therefore  they  are  called  appearances; 
although  the  objects  which  appear  before  their  eyes,  and 
which  are  perceived  by  their  senses,  appear  and  are  per- 
ceived as  much  to  the  life  as  those  on  earth  appear  to 
man;  nay,  much  more  clearly,  distinctly  and  perceptibly. 
The  appearances  thence  existing  in  the  heavens  are  called 
real  appearances,  because  they  really  exist. 

"  To  illustrate  the  nature  and  quality  of  the  objects 
which  appear  to  the  angels  according  to  correspondences, 
I  will  here  adduce  a  single  instance.  To  those  who  are 
in  intelligence  there  appear  gardens  and  paradises  full 
of  trees  and  flowers  of  every  kind.  The  trees  are  planted 
in  the  most  beautiful  order,  and  so  interwoven  as  to  form 


ENVIRONMENT  IN  HEAVEN. 


arbors  with  entrances  of  verdant  fret-work,  and  walks 
around  them, — all  of  such  beauty  as  no  language  can 
describe.  .  .  .  There  are  also  species  of  trees  and  flow- 
ers there,  such  as  were  never  seen  and  could  not  exist 
in  the  world.  On  the  trees  also  are  fruits  according  to 
the  good  of  love  in  which  the  intelligent  are  principled. 
Such  things  are  seen  by  them,  because  a  garden  and 
paradise  and  also  fruit  trees  and  flowers  correspond  to 
intelligence  and  wisdom. 

"  The  paradisiacal  scenery  of  heaven  is  stupendous. 
There  are  paradisiacal  gardens  presented  to  view,  of  an 
immense  extent,  consisting  of  all  sorts  of  trees,  of  a 
beauty  and  pleasantness  exceeding  every  idea  of  human 
thought,  which  yet  appear  in  so  living  a  manner  before 
their  external  sight,  that  they  not  only  see  them  in  the 
gross,  but  also  perceive  every  single  object  much  more 
vividly  than  the  bodily  sight  does  when  exercised  on 
similar  objects  here  on  earth." — A.  C.  n.  1622. 

"  Representatives  are  presented  in  the  other  life  accord- 
ing to  states  of  the  interiors  with  spirits,  for  they  are  corre- 
spondences. Around  spirits  who  are  in  truths  from  good, 
appear  the  most  beautiful  representatives,  namely,  houses 
and  palaces  glittering  with  gold  and  precious  stones,  also 
gardens  and  paradises  of  ineffable  beauty  ;  all  these  from 
correspondence.  But  around  those  who  are  in  truths 
not  from  good,  there  appear  nothing  but  craggy  places, 
rocks,  and  bogs,  and  sometimes  shrubberies,  but  un- 
pleasant and  barren  ;  these  also  are  from  correspond- 
ence. But  around  those  who  are  in  falsities  from  evil, 
there  appear  fens,  privies  and  other  offensive  objects : 
the  reason  of  which  is,  that  all  representatives  in  the 
other  life  are  external  things  figured  according  to  the 
states  of  the  interiors ;  for  thus  the  spiritual  world  pre- 
sents itself  visible  there." — Ibid.  n.  10,194. 

"  The  visible  objects  which  are  in  heaven  correspond 
12* 


138 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


to  the  interiors  of  the  angels,  or  to  those  things  which 
belong  to  their  faith  and  love, and  thence  to  their  intel- 
ligence and  wisdom."  Some  "  live  in  elevated  places 
which  appear  like  mountains,  .  .  .  and  in  a  vernal  atmos- 
phere. There  are  presented  before  them,  as  it  were, 
fields,  harvests  and  vineyards.  Everything  in  their 
houses  glistens  as  if  made  of  precious  stones;  .  .  others 
dwell  in  gardens  where  appear  beds  of  flowers  and  grass- 
plats  beautifully  arranged,  and  rows  of  trees  round  about, 
together  with  porticos  and  walks.  The  trees  and  flow- 
ers are  varied  every  day.  The  view  of  the  whole  in 
general  presents  delights  to  their  minds,  and  the  varieties 
in  particular  continually  renew  them.  And  because  these 
objects  correspond  to  things  divine,  and  those  who  be- 
hold them  are  in  the  knowledge  of  correspondences, 
they  are  perpetually  replenished  with  new  knowledges 
whereby  their  spiritual  rational  faculty  is  perfected." — 
H.  H.  n.  489. 

"  Substances  in  the  spiritual  world  appear  as  if  they 
were  material,  but  still  they  are  not.  And  since  they 
are  not  material,  therefore  they  are  not  constant,  being 
correspondences  of  the  affections  of  the  angels,  and 
permanent  with  their  affections,  and  disappearing  with 
them."— D.W.,  §  VIII.  See  also  A.  E.  n.  650,  121 1, 
'12,  '18,  '26. 

Such  is  the  uniform  teaching  of  Swedenborg  concern- 
ing the  objective  world  in  heaven,  and  its  determining 
cause.  And  can  we  conceive  of  anything  more  reason- 
able ?  It  satisfies  the  best  instincts  and  deepest  longings 
of  our  nature — yes,  and  the  intuitions  of  our  highest 
reason  also.  For  what  is  more  reasonable  than  that  the 
outer  world  of  those  in  the  realms  of  bliss,  should  be  in 
complete  correspondence  with  their  inner  world  ? — a  true 


ENVIRONMENT  IN  HE  A  VEN. 


pictorial  representation  of  their  noble  and  beautiful  souls? 
The  flowers  of  love  that  are  ever  opening  in  their  hearts, 
the  fruits  of  charity  they  are  ever  busy  in  bringing  forth, 
the  green  and  living  things  of  intelligence  which  are 
constantly  springing  up  within  them — why  should  not 
these  go  forth  and  embody  themselves  or  appear  under 
corresponding  forms  of  beauty  and  loveliness  ?  Why 
should  not  the  fragrance,  verdure  and  bloom  of  the  out- 
ward angelic  world,  be  in  perfect  correspondence  with 
the  fragrance,  beauty  and  bloom  of  angelic  minds  ? 

Almost  every  one  has  an  instinctive  perception  that 
there  exists  an  intimate  relation  between  the  beautiful 
and  the  good — a  relation  so  intimate  that  the  former  is 
the  divinely  ordained  representative  of  the  latter.  We 
all  feel  an  instinctive  repugnance  to  connecting  innocence 
and  virtue  with  dismal  scenes  or  unsightly  objects,  for 
we  recognize  their  native  disagreement,  or  unsuitableness 
to  each  other ;  while  inward  evil  and  outward  ugliness 
seem  naturally  to  belong  together.  Thus  Milton,  in 
portraying  the  beautiful  scenery  round  about  Adam  and 
Eve  in  the  days  of  their  innocence,  has  but  uttered  the 
universal  sentiment  of  mankind  ;  and  his  utterance,  there- 
fore, meets  with  a  ready  response  from  the  universal 
human  heart.  Every  one  feels  that  a  place  less  beauti- 
ful than  that  sweet  Garden  which  the  great  poet  has  so 
finely  pictured,  would  not  have  agreed  with  the  innocence 
and  purity  of  the  couple  he  describes.  So  universal  is 
the  perception  that  the  good  and  the  beautiful  belong 
together,  and  that  the  Creator  designed  the  one  to  be 
the  visible  image  of  the  other.  Considering  the  purity 
and  innocence  of  the  denizens  of  heaven,  what,  then, 


I40 


HEA  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


might  we  reasonably  expect  would  be  the  character  of 
their  surroundings  ? 

Then  the  light  in  which  the  angels  dwell,  and  which 
is  said  to  be  a  thousand-fold  brighter  than  that  of  our 
sun,  is  another  consideration  in  favor  of  the  truth  of 
Swedenborg's  disclosures  on  this  subject.  For  if  they 
are  in  a  state  to  bear  a  thousand-fold  brighter  light  than 
people  on  earth  enjoy,  then  the  objects  they  behold 
around  them  ought  to  be  a  thousand  times  more  numer- 
ous and  beautiful  than  are  seen  here  on  earth.  Besides, 
we  know  that  the  most  exalted  and  enlightened  minds 
always  see  with  other  eyes  than  those  of  the  ignorant 
and  depraved.  The  former,  on  account  of  their  superior 
purity  and  enlightenment,  behold  a  world  of  beauty  which 
is  quite  hidden  from  the  latter.  All  the  ways  and  works 
of  God  are  surpassingly  beautiful  ;  but  light  and  the  right 
kind  of  eyes  are  needed  to  enable  the  beholder  to  dis- 
cern their  beauty.  By  virtue,  therefore,  of  their  superior 
hght  and  better  eyesight,  the  angels  ought  to  see  round 
about  them  precisely  such  a  beautiful  world  as  Sweden- 
borg  has  described. 

And  the  Bible  adds  its  testimony  also  to  that  of  reason, 
experience,  and  the  best  instincts  of  our  nature.  Read 
the  description  of  the  Garden  in  which  man  is  said  to 
have  been  placed  at  the  time  of  his  creation,  and  where 
"  the  Lord  God  caused  to  grow  every  tree  that  is  pleas- 
ant to  the  sight  and  good  for  food."  For  although  that 
Garden  and  all  its  beautiful  belongings  are  not  to  be 
literally  interpreted — although  they  are  to  be  taken  as 
the  representatives  of  the  internal  states  of  the  most 
ancient  people  in  the  days  of  their  innocence  and  in- 


ENVIRONMENT  IN  HEAVEN. 


tegrity — the  account  serves  our  purpose  none  the  less 
for  all  that.  For  the  beautiful  surroundings  of  the  angels 
are  but  the  outward  representatives  of  their  internal  states 
— their  affections  and  thoughts — and  are  in  perfect  cor- 
respondence with  them. 

And  because  the  Scripture  is  composed  according  to 
the  same  great  law  that  determines  the  aspect  of  the  ob- 
jective world  in  the  Hereafter,  therefore  the  Lord's  spir- 
itual kingdom — the  regenerate  human  soul,  viewed  singly 
or  collectively — is  described  in  the  Bible  by  the  various 
precious  metals,  innocent  animals,  and  beautiful  objects 
in  nature;  as  by  gold  and  silver;  by  sheep,  lambs  and 
doves  ;  by  mountains  and  hills  and  well-watered  gardens ; 
by  vineyards  and  oliveyards,  cedar-trees  and  the  trees 
of  lign-aloes ;  by  a  good  land,  "  a  land  of  water-brooks, 
and  fountains  that  spring  out  of  valleys  and  hills";  "a 
land  of  vines  and  fig-trees  and  pomegranates."  These 
and  other  like  things  are  often  mentioned  in  the  Word 
where  the  Lord's  kingdom — the  regenerate  human  heart 
— is  treated  of  And  we  cannot  suppose  such  things 
were  selected  without  a  sufficient  reason.  They  are  a 
part  of  God's  own  Word ;  and  when  the  Divine  speaks 
or  acts,  it  is  ever  according  to  the  highest  reason  and 
perfect  divine  order.  And  the  reason  why  such  things 
are  mentioned  in  the  Word  when  the  states  of  the  re- 
generate are  treated  of,  is,  that  they  are  the  correspond- 
ential  forms  of  those  heavenly  principles  which  the 
Lord  establishes  in  the  hearts  of  all  whom  He  creates 
anew  in  his  own  image  and  likeness.  And  these  prin- 
ciples, in  becoming  embodied  under  the  various  beauti- 
ful forms  which  appear  in  heaven,  are  only  assuming 


142 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


their  own  appropriate  vestments, — the  very  forms  which 
the  Creator  Himself  has  ordained  for  them. 

Let  us  now  look  at  the  law  which,  according  to  Swe- 
denborg,  determines  the  whole  character  or  aspect  of  the 
objective  world  in  the  Hereafter.  If  it  is  not  susceptible 
of  a  complete  demonstration,  we  hope  at  least  to  furnish 
strong  presumptive  evidence  of  its  truth. 

This  law,  as  already  stated,  is  that  of  correspondence, 
which  means  a  relation  similar  to  that  existing  between 
the  soul  and  the  body.  It  is  in  the  nature  of  every  spir- 
itual principle  to  go  forth  and  embody  itself  under  some 
outward  form.  And  the  form  viust  correspond  to  the 
living  principle  that  enters  into,  creates  and  sustains  it. 
We  see  this  tendency  of  the  human  spirit  constantly 
manifested  here  on  earth ;  for  even  here  the  affections 
of  every  man  are  forever  seeking  embodiment,  and  they 
first  create  for  themselves  certain  correspondential  forms 
in  the  thought  of  the  understanding.  Thus  their  forms 
exist  mentally,  or  in  the  world  within  man,  before  they 
attain  a  visible  and  tangible  existence  in  the  world  with- 
out him.  They  are  visible  to  the  mental  before  they  are 
seen  by  the  bodily  eye.  This  is  true  of  everything  that 
man  creates — temples,  houses,  gardens,  machinery,  pic- 
tures, statuary,  furniture,  clothing,  and  the  like.  These 
things  arc  the  offspring  of  some  desire  or  love  with  which 
they  correspond  as  body  with  soul ;  and  they  all  existed 
as  objects  of  thought  in  man's  spiritual  world  (his  mind), 
before  they  existed  as  objects  of  sight  in  the  natural 
world.  There  is  nothing  made  by  the  hand  of  man  which 
was  not,  in  all  its  parts,  visible  to  the  eye  of  the  mind 
before  it  was  visible  to  the  eye  of  sense ;  and  nothing 


ENVIRONMENT  IN  HEAVEN. 


which  does  not  correspond  to  the  love  that  gave  it  birth, 
as  effect  corresponds  to  cause,  or  body  to  soul.  Thus 
all  the  things  in  this  natural  world  which  are  products 
of  human  ingenuity,  are  correspondences  of  the  affec- 
tions and  thoughts  of  men.  They  are  visible  represen- 
tative forms  of  certain  invisible  mental  states  which  they 
body  forth  and  to  which  they  correspond.  And  the 
changes  which  are  continually  taking  place  in  that  por- 
tion of  the  outward  world  which  is  subject  to  man's  con- 
trol, keep  pace  with  men's  internal  or  mental  changes  to 
which  they  correspond,  and  without  which  no  outward 
changes  could  occur. 

Every  individual  on  earth  strives  to  create  around  him- 
self (and  succeeds  if  he  has  the  means  and  opportunity) 
an  outward  or  objective  world  which  is  in  exact  corre- 
spondence with  his  inner  or  mental  world — that  is,  so  far 
as  relates  to  tJie  natural  degree  of  ids  viind.  He  impresses 
himself,  as  to  this  degree,  on  whatever  he  makes  or  causes 
to  be  made.  His  own  mind,  his  coarseness  or  his  cul- 
ture, his  refined  taste  or  the  absence  of  it,  is  visibly 
stamped  on  all  around  him, — on  the  house  he  builds,  the 
furniture  he  orders,  the  pictures  he  buys,  the  trees  he 
plants,  and  the  flowers  he  cultivates.  If  his  means  and 
opportunity  are  ample,  all  his  surroundings  will,  after  a 
while,  be  a  certain  representative  image  of  himself;  they 
will  be  in  exact  correspondence  with  his  external  or 
natural  mind,  and  therefore  a  true  expression  of  the 
natural  affections  and  thoughts  in  which  they  originated. 
So  true  is  this,  and  so  well  understood  generally,  that 
almost  any  careful  observer  can  tell  at  a  glance,  by  his 


144 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


visible  surroundings,  the  man  of  culture  and  refinement 
from  one  of  low  breeding  and  depraved  tastes. 

And  as  with  individuals,  so  with  communities  or  men 
in  larger  form.  Every  community,  so  far  as  its  means 
will  permit,  creates  an  outer  in  correspondence  with  its 
inner  world — that  is,  with  its  own  prevailing  mental 
character.  Let  a  man  travel  through  South  Africa  or 
Patagonia,  and  then  visit  the  towns  and  villages  of  New 
England  or  Old  England,  and  although  he  might  not 
converse  with  one  of  the  inhabitants,  but  only  look  at 
their  environment,  he  would  see  the  difference  in  the 
mental  condition  of  the  people  of  those  countries  as 
plainly  as  if  their  affections  and  thoughts  were  all  writ- 
ten in  a  book. 

But  it  is  to  be  observed  that  the  world  which  people 
create  round  about  them  here,  being  external  and  natural, 
is  in  correspondence  not  with  their  internal  and  spiritual, 
but  with  their  external  and  natural  thoughts  and  affec- 
tions. And  if  there  exists  this  correspondence  between 
the  natural  mind  and  the  world  which  this  mind  creates 
round  about  itself  in  the  realm  of  nature — if  we  see  every- 
where a  strong  tendency  in  natural  affections  and  thoughts 
to  go  forth  and  embody  themselves  under  corresponding 
natural  forms — then  it  is  reasonable  to  conclude  that  this 
law  of  correspondence  must  be  the  very  law  that  de- 
termines the  character  or  aspect  of  the  objective  world 
in  heaven.  What  other  conceivable  law  is  there,  to 
which  the  rational  mind  so  readily  yields  assent? 

P'urthcrmorc,  every  one  knows  how  much  the  outward 
aspect  of  all  things  on  earth  depends  on  the  mental  state 
of  the  beholder.    The  outer  is  ever  taking  on  the  com- 


ENVIRONMENT  IN  HE  A  VEN. 


plexion  of  the  inner  world,  even  here.  There  are  times 
when  a  dismal  pall  seems  spread  over  all  creation  ;  when 
all  around  us  seems  like  a  desert;  when  the  sweetest 
flowers  are  undelightful,  and  the  laughter  of  children  has 
no  music  to  our  ears,  and  the  faces  of  dearest  friends  no 
beauty  to  our  eyes ; — times  when  the  loveliest  scenes  in 
nature — the  brightest  sunshine  and  the  verdant  earth — 
have  for  us  no  cheerful  smile,  but  rather  an  indignant 
frown.  And  are  not  these  the  times  when  the  heart  is 
cold  and  desolate  and  sad  ?  when  darkness  and  gloom 
brood  over  our  inner  world  ?  But  when  the  sunshine 
returns  to  the  soul,  when  the  heart  glows  with  affection, 
and  hope  is  bright  and  buoyant,  and  the  world  within 
us  becomes  lighted  up  with  a  sweet  and  serene  joy,  how 
changed  is  the  aspect  of  the  world  without !  Nature  no 
longer  mourns  or  frowns,  but  greets  us  everywhere  with 
benignant  smiles.  The  very  air  seems  balmy,  as  if  laden 
with  the  perfume  of  flowers.  The  faces  of  friends  beam 
with  unwonted  lustre.  There  is  music  in  the  rain's  dull 
drizzle,  and  in  the  wind's  low  sigh.  The  aspect  of  the 
whole  outward  world  is  changed,  and  that  which  seemed 
so  sombre  and  frowning  but  a  little  while  ago,  is  now 
radiant  with  beauty  and  with  smiles. 

Such  is  the  controling  power  which  our  inner  or  sub- 
jective exerts  over  our  outer  or  objective  world,  even 
here  on  earth.  Such  the  manifest  tendency  of  the  soul 
to  stamp  its  own  moods  or  complexion  on  all  its  sur- 
roundings ; — to  color  and  shape  the  outward  in  complete 
correspondence  with  itself.  Men  of  the  deepest  insight 
have  ever  seen  and  acknowledged  this  law.  It  is  well 
expressed  by  one  of  our  own  poets,  who  sings : 


146 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


"  It  is  the  soul's  prerogative— its  fate 
To  shape  the  outward  to  its  own  estate. 
If  right  itself,  then  all  around  is  well ; 
If  wrong,  it  makes  of  all  without  a  hell. 

Turn  where  thou  wilt,  thyself  in  all  things  see 
Reflected  back. — 

Who  has  no  inward  beauty,  none  perceives, 
Though  all  around  is  beautiful. — 

Soul  !  fearful  is  thy  power,  which  thus  transforms 
All  things  into  thy  likeness." 

If  such  be  the  power  of  the  soul  here  on  earth,  to 
"  transform  all  things  into  its  likeness,"  what  should  re- 
sult when  it  is  released  from  its  material  clog  and  earthly 
limitations,  and  brought  consciously  into  a  world,  the 
sub.stances  of  which  being  altogether  spiritual,  are  plastic 
to  its  every  breath  ?  What  but  the  very  thing  declared 
in  the  passages  cited  near  the  commencement  of  this 
chapter  ?  We  submit  that  the  only  rational  conclusion 
to  be  drawn  from  the  brief  argument  we  have  here  pre- 
sented, is,  that  there  is  just  such  an  outward  or  objective 
world  in  heaven  as  Swedenborg  has  described,  the  char- 
acter or  aspect  of  which  is  determined  by  the  great  and 
universal  law  that  he  has  revealed — the  law  according  to 
which  the  Sacred  Scripture  is  written,  and  creation  has 
proceeded  from  the  beginning,  and  spirit  in  all  worlds 
forever  seeks  to  embody  itself — the  law  of  correspond- 
ence. 

And  let  it  be  added  in  conclusion  (and  this  is  further 
evidence  of  its  truth)  that  the  doctrine  is  not  purely 
speculative,  as  might  at  first  be  supposed,  but  one  of 


ENVIROXMEXT  IN  HEAVEN. 


U7 


great  practical  value.  It  offers  us  a  heaven  that  is  not  a 
realm  of  unsubstantial  shadows,  but  one  of  substantial 
realities.  It  shows  us  myriads  of  human  beings,  once 
denizens  of  earth,  now  advanced  to  a  more  perfect  state, 
with  faculties  improved,  and  all  the  senses  become  far 
more  acute,  and  an  external  world  of  indescribable 
beauty.  And  by  revealing  the  underlying  and  determin- 
ing cause  of  its  wondrous  beauty — the  pure  and  unselfish 
loves  in  the  hearts  of  the  angels — it  acquaints  us  with 
this  momentous  fact :  that  our  objective  world  in  the 
Hereafter  will  be  a  complete  representative  of  our  inner 
selves,  in  exact  correspondence  with  our  own  characters 
or  ruling  loves  ;  beautiful  beyond  conception  if  these  are 
noble  and  unselfish,  but  dreary  and  dismal  if  they  are 
mean  and  selfish.  It  shows  us  that,  since  we  take  our 
characters  with  us  into  the  other  world  and  can  take 
nothing  else,  therefore  every  one  will  take  with  him  his 
own  heaven  or — his  own  hell ;  for  both  these  kingdoms 
are  within  men's  souls ;  and  the  heaven  or  the  hell  that 
will  be  visible  round  about  us  in  the  Hereafter,  will  be 
the  correspondential  image  of  that  which  has  been  formed 
within  us  here. 

Thus  the  doctrine  settles  forever — and  upon  a  basis 
as  substantial  as  the  soul  itself — the  question  in  regard 
to  our  entrance  into  heaven,  showing  the  utter  impossi- 
bility of  admission  from  immediate  mercy.  It  teaches 
with  clearness  and  impressiveness  the  solemn  truth,  that 
each  one  is  making  while  here  on  earth,  his  garden  or 
his  wilderness,  his  paradise  or  his  desert,  for  the  ages  to 
come  ; — is  building  for  himself  a  beautiful  palace  or  a 
gloomy  prison-house  that  is  to  endure  forever.  What 


148 


HE  A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


teaching  can  be  more  solemn  than  this?  What  more 
practical,  or  more  potent  in  benign  influence  when  clear- 
ly understood  and  cordially  accepted? 


XII. 

SOCIETIES  IN  HEAVEN. 

ARE  the  angels  endowed  with  social  affections  kin- 
dred to  those  of  men  ?  and  have  they  an  oppor- 
tunity to  exercise  them  ?  Do  they  all  dwell  in  one 
society,  or  are  there  many  societies  ?  And  if  arranged 
into  societies,  what  is  the  law  that  governs  in  the  ar- 
rangement? What  answer  does  Swedenborg  give  to 
these  inquiries  ? — for  he  must  have  known  how  the  case 
is,  if  his  claim  to  open  intercourse  with  the  heavenly 
world  be  well  founded.  But  we  will  first  consider  the 
subject  in  the  light  of  reason. 

It  was  shown  in  the  early  part  of  this  work  that  the 
angels  are  all  from  the  human  race.  They  are  human 
in  their  form  and  nature — men  and  women  in  an  ad- 
vanced or  thoroughly  regenerate  state.  Therefore  they 
must  possess  social  qualities  ;  and  social  qualities  imply 
social  relations,  or  the  existence  of  societies.  For  man 
is  a  social  being.  He  was  created  to  live  in  society ;  and 
he  cannot  be  happy  without  intercourse  with  his  fellows. 
In  a  perfectly  isolated  state,  what  would  there  be  to  call 
forth  his  affections  or  to  give  exercise  to  his  varied  pow- 
ers? The  faculties  of  each  soul  have  a  definite  relation 
to  other  souls,  as  truly  as  the  eye  has  to  light,  the  ear 


SOCIETIES  IN  HEAVEN. 


149 


to  air,  the  tongue  to  flavors,  and  the  nose  to  odors. 
Which  proves  that  man  was  created  for  society, as  plainly 
as  our  bodily  senses,  by  their  very  constitution,  presup- 
pose the  existence  of  light,  air,  flavors  and  odors,  to 
which  they  bear  a  fixed  and  definite  relation. 

Besides,  we  know  that  people  are  not  happy  when  de- 
prived of  all  intercourse  with  their  fellows.  And  for  this 
obvious  reason  :  that  they  are  gifted  with  affections  which 
crave  the  fellowship  of  kindred  minds,  and  they  cannot 
be  happy  without  the  opportunity  to  exercise  these  af- 
fections. We  can  hardly  conceive  of  a  severer  sentence 
than  that  which  condemns  a  human  being  to  solitary 
confinement  for  a  long  time.  Cases  have  occurred  where 
such  isolation  has  caused  an  utter  wreck  of  the  mental 
faculties,  reducing  the  individual  to  a  state  of  lunacy. 

Unless,  therefore,  all  the  native  and  strong  appetencies 
of  the  soul  are  to  be  extinguished  in  the  Hereafter — un- 
less our  mental  constitution  is  to  be  entirely  changed, 
we  must  then  as  now  desire  association  with  others. 
And  to  possess  this  innate  social  inclination,  this  hunger 
of  the  heart  for  society,  and  at  the  same  time  to  be  de- 
nied the  possibility  of  social  intercourse,  would  render 
us  supremely  miserable.  Much  of  our  happiness  in  this 
world,  comes  from  the  exercise  of  our  social  feelings — 
from  the  interchange  of  thought  with  kindred  minds, 
and  the  doing  of  kindly  deeds  for  others.  From  all  of 
which  the  conclusion  is  inevitable,  that  the  angels  must 
possess  a  social  nature ;  and  if  heaven  is  a  happy  state, 
they  must  have  ample  opportunity  for  its  exercise.  And 
this  involves  the  necessity  of  social  intercourse  and  social 
relations. 
'3* 


150  HEAVEN  REVEALED. 

But  do  all  the  angels  live  in  one  and  the  same  society  ? 
This  seems  highly  improbable.  It  would  not  be  in  ac- 
cordance with  the  Divine  order  and  arrangements  as 
revealed  in  this  lower  world.  Here,  all  things  are  dis- 
tributed into  series  or  societies.  They  are  beautifully 
grouped ;  yet  the  groups  exist  and  work  together  in  ad- 
mirable harmony. 

There  are  groups  of  suns  and  systems  in  the  immensity 
of  space ;  and  groups  of  planets  in  the  several  systems. 
And  on  the  earth  trees  and  flowers  are  usually  grouped, 
one  variety  flourishing  in  one  locality,  and  a  different  one 
in  another.  So,  too,  birds,  animals,  insects  and  fishes 
are  commonly  found  in  groups.  And  every  muscle  in 
our  bodies  consists  of  a  group  of  similar  fibres,  and  every 
crystal  in  the  bosom  of  the  earth,  of  a  group  of  lesser 
crystals. 

It  is  evidently  God's  plan,  therefore,  to  arrange  things 
of  a  similar  nature  into  groups  or  societies.  And  we 
may  reasonably  conclude  that  man,  for  whose  behoof 
all  other  things  were  created,  would  not  form  an  excep- 
tion to  this  general  plan.  We  should  expect  that  heaven 
would  be  typified  by  the  things  of  earth  that  are  in  order; 
and  that  the  angels  would  be  distributed  into  many  dif- 
ferent but  concordant  societies. 

But  a  still  stronger  argument  may  be  drawn  from  the 
known  diversity  in  human  character.  This  diversity  de- 
pends not  merely  upon  a  difference  in  education,  habits, 
and  outward  circumstances,  but  equally  upon  a  difference 
in  the  native  constitution  of  men's  minds.  No  two  minds 
are  ever  constituted  precisely  alike.  No  two  things  in 
the  universe  are  exactly  alike — no  two  pebbles  on  the 


SOCIETIES  IN  HEAVEN. 


beach,  no  two  leaves  on  a  tree,  no  two  feathers  on  a  bird, 
no  two  hairs  on  the  head  of  man  or  body  of  beast.  And 
the  reason  is,  that  the  Creator,  being  Himself  infinite, 
delights  in  variety.  And  the  diversity  existing  among 
men  in  the  original  constitution  of  their  minds  as  well 
as  in  their  features  and  complexion,  is  similar  to  that  ob- 
servable throughout  the  created  universe.  Sometimes 
this  diversity  is  slight,  as  among  people  of  the  same  tribe 
or  nationality  ;  sometimes  scarcely  discernible,  as  among 
those  of  the  same  family.  Again, — as  among  people  of 
different  races,  the  Malay  and  the  American,  the  African 
and  the  Caucasian, — the  diversity  is  very  wide.  And 
these  people  are  just  as  different  in  their  mental  charac- 
teristics as  in  their  physical  constitution. 

Now  this  known  diversity  of  character  is  the  distribut- 
ing social  force  among  people  in  this  world,  whereby 
they  are  arranged  into  different  groups  or  societies.  In 
general,  different  races  and  nationalities  do  not  incline 
to  associate.  But  Africans  prefer  the  society  of  Africans; 
Chinamen  the  society  of  Chinese  ;  English,  French,  Ger- 
mans, Italians,  etc.,  the  society  of  those  of  their  own 
nation.  And  for  this  obvious  reason  :  that  people  of  the 
same  nation  are  usually  most  alike  in  their  tastes,  habits 
and  feelings  ;  and  people  everywhere  prefer  the  society 
of  those  who  are  most  like  themselves. 

And  among  people  of  the  same  country  we  find  many 
different  societies,  resulting  from  diversity  of  character 
and  that  implanted  inclination  which  leads  men  to  pre- 
fer the  society  of  kindred  minds.  Every  one  has  his 
circle  of  intimate  friends,  in  whose  society  he  finds  him- 
self most  free  and  happy.    And  these  arc  usually  peo- 


152 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


pie  of  a  character  near  akin  to  his  own — of  similar  tastes, 
habits,  manners,  feelings  and  purposes.  It  is  this  simi- 
larity of  character  which  draws  them  together,  and  ren- 
ders their  society  mutually  agreeable.  Hence  we  find 
those  who  are  deeply  absorbed  in  any  particular  subject 
— as  temperance,  peace,  abolition,  moral  reform,  and  the 
like — anxious  to  make  the  acquaintance  and  enjoy  the 
society  of  persons  known  to  be  interested  in  the  same 
subject. 

And  where  religion  has  taken  a  strong  hold  on  the 
mind  of  a  community,  especially  if  doctrine  or  ritual  is 
more  thought  of  than  the  spirit  and  life  of  religion,  there 
you  will  find  those  of  similar  beliefs  and  ecclesiastical 
preferences,  drawn  into  the  same  society.  They  associate 
under  the  prompting  influence  of  that  implanted  instinct 
which  attracts  each  one  to  his  like.  Thus  Methodists 
prefer  to  associate  with  Methodists,  Baptists  with  Bap- 
tists, Friends  with  Friends,  Catholics  with  Catholics,  and 
so  on.  And  there  is  nothing  wrong  in  this.  Each  one, 
in  choosing  the  society  of  those  most  like  himself,  is  but 
yielding  to  a  law  of  his  nature — the  law  of  spiritual  af- 
finity. The  wrong  comes  when,  through  a  narrow  and 
mistaken  view  of  the  subject,  people  look  upon  those  of 
a  society  or  creed  different  from  their  own,  as  therefore 
inferior  to  or  less  righteous  than  themselves,  and  assume 
toward  them  an  unfriendly  attitude. 

We  have  an  illustration  of  the  same  law  in  all  volun- 
tary associations ;  for  the  evil  as  well  as  the  good  are 
drawn  together  by  mutual  affinity.  Thus  profligates 
prefer  the  society  of  profligates,  gamblers  the  society  of 
gamblers,  thieves  the  society  of  thieves;  and  tipplers, 


SOCIETIES  IN  HEAVE iV. 


burglars,  pirates,  and  the  like,  the  society  of  those  of 
like  character.  The  law  is  universal.  Everywhere  like 
ones  have  an  affinity  for  each  other ;  and  by  the  force 
of  such  affinity  they  are  drawn  and  held  together.  And 
it  is  only  in  the  society  of  like  ones  that  they  feel  quite 
content  and  at  home.  They  are  then  free  and  feel  at 
home,  because  they  feel  at  liberty  to  act  out  themselves 
— to  speak  as  they  think,  and  do  as  they  desire. 

And  the  same  great  law  is  observable  everywhere 
throughout  the  domains  of  animated  nature.  Beasts, 
birds,  fishes  and  insects  are  found  grouped  according 
to  this  same  law.  Those  of  the  same  species  are  found 
in  the  same  group,  because  of  their  mutual  affinity.  They 
love  to  be  together.  Nor  does  this  law  cease  to  operate 
even  in  the  lower  kingdoms  of  nature.  Every  tree  is 
but  a  group  of  homogeneous  fibres,  and  every  simple 
mineral  a  group  of  homogeneous  atoms  which  are  drawn 
and  held  together  by  force  of  mutual  attraction.  There 
can  be  no  doubt,  therefore,  about  the  universality  of  this 
law ;  and  if  universal,  it  must  exist  in  heaven  as  well  as 
on  earth. 

But  setting  aside  the  argument  from  analogy,  is  not 
the  wide  diversity  observable  among  men,  viewed  in 
connection  with  the  fact  that  every  one  takes  his  own 
character  with  him  into  the  other  world,  sufficient  of 
itself  to  prove  the  distribution  of  the  heavenly  inhabi- 
tants into  many  distinct  societies  ?  And  from  what  we 
know  of  the  law  that  governs  in  human  associations  on 
earth,  we  may  infer  the  law  that  governs  in  angelic  as- 
sociations in  heaven.  It  is  the  law  of  spiritual  affinity. 
In  heaven  as  on  earth,  those  nearest  alike  in  character 


154 


HE  A  VEN  RE  IE  A  LED. 


must  love  to  be  together,  and  feel  happiest  and  most  at 
home  in  each  other's  society.  As  natural  attraction, 
therefore,  is  the  law  in  the  natural  world,  that  arranges 
in  distinct  groups  objects  most  nearly  related,  so  spirit- 
ual attraction  determined  by  the  spiritual  relationship 
and  consequent  affinity  of  spirits,  02ight  to  be  the  law 
in  the  spiritual  world  that  distributes  both  good  and 
evil  spirits  into  many  distinct  societies. 

And  precisely  this  is  what  has  been  revealed  through 
Swedenborg  on  the  subject.  He  says  that  the  angels 
are  distributed  into  innumerable  societies,  some  of  them 
consisting  of  myriads  and  others  of  thousands.  And 
there  is  nothing  forced  or  arbitrary  in  this  arrangement. 
Every  one  goes  in  freedom  to  the  society  he  loves  and 
is  nearest  akin  to.  The  law  that  governs  in  all  angelic 
associations,  he  says,  is  the  law  of  spiritual  affinity. 
Through  the  constant  operation  and  force  of  this  law, 
angels  of  like  character  are  drawn  together  and  held  to- 
gether in  the  same  society.    To  cite  his  own  words : 

"The  angels  do  not  all  dwell  together  in  one  place, 
but  are  distinguished  into  larger  and  smaller  societies 
according  to  the  differences  of  the  good  of  love  and 
faith  in  which  they  are.  They  who  are  in  similar  good 
form  one  society.  Goods  in  the  heavens  are  of  infinite 
variety,  and  every  angel  is  such  in  character  as  is  his 
own  good.  Those  of  like  character  are  brought  to- 
gether as  it  were  spontaneously;  for  with  their  like  they 
arc  as  with  their  own  [relations]  and  at  home;  but  with 
others,  as  with  strangers  and  abroad.  When  they  are 
with  their  like  they  are  also  in  their  freedom,  and  thence 
in  every  delight  of  life. 

"  All  who  are  in  similar  good  also  know  each  other' 
■ — although  they  had  never  met  before — ^just  as  men  in 


SOCIETIES  IiV  HEAVEN. 


the  world  know  their  kindred,  relations  and  friends. 
The  rca'^on  is,  that  in  the  other  life  there  are  no  kin- 
dreds, relationships  and  friendships  but  such  as  are  spir- 
itual, that  is,  of  love  and  faith.  I  have  several  times 
been  permitted  to  see  this,  when  I  have  been  in  the 
spirit,  withdrawn  as  it  were  from  the  body,  and  thus  in 
company  with  angels.  On  such  occasions  I  have  seen 
some  who  seemed  as  if  I  had  known  them  from  infancy. 
But  others  seemed  wholly  unknown  to  me.  They  who 
seemed  as  if  known  from  infancy,  were  those  who  were 
in  a  state  similar  to  the  state  of  my  spirit;  but  they  who 
were  unknown,  were  in  a  dissimilar  state." — H.  H.  n. 
41-46;  also  A.  R.  n.  611. 

"  The  universal  heaven  is  distinguished  into  societies 
according  to  the  differences  of  the  love  of  good,  and 
every  spirit  who  is  elevated  into  heaven  and  becomes 
an  angel,  is  conveyed  to  that  society  which  is  distin- 
guished by  his  ruling  love.  On  his  arrival  there,  he  is 
as  though  he  were  at  home,  and  living  in  the  house 
where  he  was  born.  The  angel  perceives  this,  and  is 
there  consociated  with  those  like  himself  When  he 
departs  thence,  and  goes  to  some  other  place,  he  is  al- 
ways sensible  of  a  certain  inward  resistance,  attended 
with  a  desire  to  return  to  his  like,  and  thus  to  his  ruling 
love.  It  is  in  this  way  that  consociations  in  heaven  are 
effected.  The  like  occurs  in  hell,  where  also  they  are 
consociated  according  to  loves  which  are  the  opposite 
of  the  loves  of  heaven." — Ibid.  n.  479. 

All  good  people,  we  know,  are  not  quite  congenial, 
and  would  not  be  happy  in  each  other's  society.  Their 
good  is  of  a  different  quality;  and  there  are  many  kinds 
and  degrees  of  good  even  in  heaven,  some  of  which  are 
widely  different  from  others.  "As  all  in  heaven,"  says 
Swedenborg,  "  are  distinguished  according  to  goods,  it 


156 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


may  be  clearly  seen  how  manifold  and  various  good  is; 
for  it  is  so  various  that  there  is  no  instance  of  one  being 
in  like  good  with  another ;  yea,  if  myriads  of  myriads 
should  be  multiplied  to  eternity,  the  good  of  one  would 
not  be  like  that  of  another,  just  as  the  face  of  one  is 
never  like  the  face  of  another.  Good  also  in  the  heav- 
ens forms  the  faces  of  the  angels." — A.  C.  n.  7236. 

And  as  there  are  countless  degrees  of  good  in  heaven, 
so  there  is,  according  to  Swedenborg,  an  endless  variety 
there.  And  this  variety  adds  greatly  to  its  perfection. 
It  is  this  which  necessitates  the  distribution  of  the  angels 
into  many  distinct  societies ;  for  only  those  who  are  in 
a  similar  kind  and  degree  of  good,  have  a  strong  affec- 
tion for  each  other.  There  may  be  a  thousand  persons 
— all  good ;  but  their  good  may  be  so  different  both  in 
kind  and  in  degree,  that  they  feel  no  strong  attraction 
toward  each  other,  and  would  not,  if  left  in  perfect  free- 
dom, choose  each  other's  society.  Being  spiritually  un- 
like, they  would  prefer  to  live  apart;  for  they  are  spir- 
itually remote  from  each  other.    As  Swedenborg  says : 

"The  angelic  societies  in  the  heavens  are  also  distant 
from  each  other  according  to  the  general  and  specific 
differences  of  their  goods.  For  distances  in  the  spirit- 
ual world  are  from  no  other  origin  than  from  a  differ- 
ence in  the  states  of  the  interiors ;  consequently,  in  the 
heavens,  from  a  difference  in  the  states  of  love.  Those 
are  far  apart  who  differ  much,  and  those  are  near  who 
differ  little.  Similarity  brings  them  together." — H.  H. 
n.  42. 

"  All  in  heaven  are  consociated  according  to  spiritual 
affinities,  which  are  those  of  good  and  truth  in  their 
order.    So  is  it  in  the  whole  heaven,  so  in  every  society. 


SOCIETIES  IN  HEAVEN. 


157 


and  so  in  every  house.  Hence  it  is  that  the  angels  who 
are  in  similar  good  and  truth,  know  each  other  like  those 
related  by  consanguinity  and  affinity  on  earth,  just  as  if 
they  had  been  acquainted  from  infancy." — H.  H.  n.  205. 

We  are  told,  also,  that  there  is  a  similarity  of  expres- 
sion— a  strong  family  likeness — among  those  of  the  same 
society ;  for  the  affections  are  there  clearly  revealed  in 
the  face,  which  is  their  representative  image.  No  one  in 
heaven  has  a  face  that  does  not  correspond  to  and  faith- 
fully express  his  prevailing  affections. 

"  All  who  belong  to  the  same  angelic  society,  resemble 
each  other  in  general,  but  not  in  particular.  ...  It  is  well 
known  that  every  race  of  people  have  some  general  re- 
semblance in  the  face  and  eyes,  whereby  they  are  known 
and  distinguished  from  other  races  ;  and  the  distinction 
between  families  is  still  more  marked.  But  it  is  more 
perfect  in  the  heavens,  because  there  all  the  interior  af- 
fections appear  and  shine  forth  from  the  face,  for  the  face 
in  heaven  is  the  external  and  representative  form  of  those 
affections.  No  one  in  heaven  is  permitted  to  have  a  face 
that  is  not  in  correspondence  with  his  affections." — Ibid, 
n.  47. 

The  reasonableness  of  all  this  is  too  obvious  to  need 
any  argument.  And  these  disclosures  accord  with  the 
teachings  of  Scripture  as  well  as  with  the  intuitions  of 
reason.  The  "  many  mansions  "  in  the  Father's  house 
of  which  the  Divine  Saviour  spake,  clearly  point  to  the 
many  angelic  societies  resulting  from  the  endless  di- 
versity of  good  and  truth  in  heaven.  Besides,  the  word 
translated  licavcn  is  usually  found  in  the  plural  (heavens), 
both  in  the  original  Hebrew  and  Greek  of  the  Bible — 
another  circumstance  indicative  of  the  fact  that  there  are 
14 


158 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


many  heavens,  or  many  different  states,  all  of  which  are 
good  and  heavenly,  necessitating  therefore  many  differ- 
ent angelic  societies ;  for  every  such  society  is  a  heaven 
in  a  less  form.  The  apostle  Paul,  too,  speaks  of  being 
"  caught  up  to  the  tJiird  heaven  "  on  one  occasion, — a 
fact  revealing  a  diversity  of  state  among  the  angels,  and 
the  consequent  plurality  of  the  heavenly  societies. 

Moreover,  there  are  just  as  strong  reasons  for  the 
division  of  the  whole  angelic  heaven  into  distinct  so- 
cieties, as  there  are  for  the  division  of  all  the  inhabitants 
of  the  spiritual  world  into  the  two  classes  of  good  and 
evil ;  or  for  the  Scripture  doctrine  of  a  heaven  of  angels 
and  a  hell  of  devils.  For  the  many  different  societies 
both  in  heaven  and  in  hell,  result  from  the  operation  of 
the  same  law  that  produces  the  two  grand  divisions  of 
spirits  whereof  the  Bible  so  often  speaks — the  law  of 
spiritual  affinity.  This  law  is  not  arbitrary,  nor  of  man's 
inventing,  but  has  its  foundation  in  the  very  constitution 
of  the  human  soul,  and  is  as  fixed  as  the  law  of  chemical 
affinity.  It  is  by  virtue  of  this  law  that  angels  of  like 
character  are  drawn  together  and  held  together  in  the 
same  society.  For  every  one  in  the  other  world  yields 
to  his  attractions,  and  goes  whithersoever  his  ruling  love 
leads  him ;  and  this  invariably  leads  him  to  the  society 
of  those  who  are  most  like  himself  There  he  is  as  if 
with  his  own  kindred — they  are  his  spiritual  kindred. 
There  he  is  in  freedom,  is  contented  and  happy.  There, 
and  there  only,  does  he  feel  quite  at  home. 

And  here  we  have  another  display  of  the  Lord's  bound- 
less wisdom  and  love  in  providing  a  home  in  his  own 
house  for  every  one  who  has  learned  to  love  the  good 


SOCIETIES  IN  HEAVEN. 


and  the  true  in  however  humble  a  degree.  The  African 
and  the  Arab,  the  Hindu  and  the  Turk,  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  and  the  Indian — every  one  of  whatever  color, 
clime,  or  creed,  who  has  religiously  followed  the  light 
vouchsafed  him,  will  find  there  a  congenial  home  in  the 
society  of  kindred  spirits.  He  will  be  among  his  spir- 
itual kith  and  kin,  and  have  no  desire  to  be  elsewhere, 
being  in  just  the  society  that  is  suited  to  him,  and  that 
he  most  covets.  But  the  heaven  of  the  Mahometan  will 
not  be  that  of  the  Christian,  nor  will  all  the  good  from 
Christian  lands  dwell  together,  but  every  one  in  his  own 
heaven — every  one  in  the  society  of  those  he  loves  best, 
and  in  happiness  proportioned  to  the  kind  and  degree 
of  his  goodness.  All  who  have  an  affinity  for  the  society 
of  the  just,  will  find  a  congenial  home  in  some  one  of 
the  "  many  mansions  "  in  the  realms  above. 

Then  look  at  the  practical  tendency  of  this  doctrine. 
It  is  plain  to  see  how  it  discountenances  that  narrow  and 
exclusive  spirit  which  would  have  us  believe  there  is  but 
one  kind  and  degree  of  goodness,  but  one  acceptable 
or  saving  creed,  and  but  one  denomination  or  church 
through  which  an  entrance  into  heaven  can  be  effected. 
It  inculcates  the  beautiful  truth  which  all  the  best  peo- 
ple in  Christendom  are  beginning  to  see  and  acknowl- 
edge, that  the  church  on  earth — though  one  in  spirit,  like 
the  societies  in  heaven — must  needs  consist  of  an  end- 
less variety.  It  deals  a  fatal  blow,  therefore,  to  the  old 
sectarianism  which  has  so  long  disfigured  and  misrepre- 
sented the  Christian  religion  ;  and  shows  that  it  is  a  part 
of  the  beautiful  economy  of  God,  avouched  by  every- 
thing in  heaven  as  well  as  on  earth,  that  people's  minds 


i6o 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


should  differ  not  less  widely  than  their  faces ;  and  that 
this  very  diversity,  giving  rise  to  different  denominations 
or  churches,  will  add  to  the  beauty,  strength  and  per- 
fection of  the  whole,  when  all  shall  become  animated  by 
the  Divine  Master's  spirit. 

The  catholic  spirit  of  the  New  Theology,  by  which 
as  well  as  by  its  doctrines  it  is  so  broadly  distinguished 
from  the  Old,  and  which  is  well  illustrated  by  the  diver- 
sity in  the  heavenly  societies,  may  be  further  seen  from 
passages  like  the  following,  in  which  the  writings  of 
Swedenborg  abound. 

"  When  love  to  the  Lord  and  charity  toward  the 
neighbor,  that  is,  the  good  of  life,  are  made  the  essen- 
tials with  all  and  with  each  individual,  then  churches, 
how  many  soever  they  may  be,  make  one  ;  and  each  is 
then  one  in  the  kingdom  of  the  Lord.  This  is  also  the 
case  in  respect  to  heaven  where  there  are  innumerable 
societies,  all  different  from  each  other;  but  still  they 
constitute  one  heaven,  because  all  are  principled  in  love 
to  the  Lord  and  charity  toward  the  neighbor  [though 
in  different  degrees]." — A.  C.  n.  2982. 

"  The  varieties  and  differences  of  doctrinals  [in  the 
various  churches]  are  innumerable.  .  .  But  notwith- 
standing there  are  so  many  varieties  and  differences, 
still  they  together  form  one  church  when  all  acknowl- 
edge charity  as  the  essential  of  the  church  ;  or,  what  is 
the  same,  when  they  have  respect  to  life  as  the  end  of 
doctrine ;  that  is,  when  they  inquire  how  a  man  of  the 
church  lives,  and  not  so  much  what  are  his  sentiments ; 
for  every  one  in  the  other  life  is  gifted  with  a  lot  from 
the  Lord  according  to  the  good  of  his  life,  not  accord- 
ing to  the  truth  of  doctrine  separate  from  this  good." — 
Ibid.  n.  3241. 


SOCIETIES  IN  HEAVEN.  l6l 

"The  Lord's  spiritual  kingdom  in  the  hcaven.s  is  va- 
rious according  to  what  appertains  to  faith,  insomuch 
that  there  is  not  one  society,  nor  even  one  in  a  society, 
who,  in  tliose  things  which  relate  to  the  truth  of  faith, 
is  entirely  agreed  with  others  as  to  his  ideas.  Never- 
theless the  Lord's  spiritual  kingdoni  in  the  heavens 
is  one,  because  all  account  charity  as  principal ;  for 
charity  constitutes  the  spiritual  church,  and  not  faith, 
unless  you  say  that  faith  is  charity.  Whoever  is  prin- 
cipled in  charity,  loves  his  neighbor,  and  with  regard  to 
his  dissenting  from  him  in  matters  of  belief  this  he  ex- 
cuses, provided  only  that  he  lives  in  goods  and  truths. 
He  does  not  even  condemn  the  wcil-disposed  Gentiles, 
althougli  they  are  ignorant  of  the  Lord,  and  know  not 
any  truth  of  faith  ;  for  he  who  lives  in  charity,  that  is, 
in  good,  receives  such  truths  from  the  Lord  as  suit  with 
his  good  ;  and  good  Gentiles  receive  such  truths  as  in 
another  life  may  be  bended  into  truths  of  faith." — A.  C. 
n.  3267. 

"  Let  this  truth  be  received  as  a  principle,  that  love 
to  the  Lord  and  charity  towards  our  neighbor  are  the 
essentials  on  which  hang  all  the  law,  and  concerning 
which  all  the  prophets  speak,  and  thus  that  they  are  the 
essentials  of  all  doctrine  and  of  all  worship,  then  all 
heresies  would  vanish,  and  out  of  many  churches  would 
be  formed  one  church,  however  they  might  differ  as  to 
doctrines  and  rituals.  .  .  Then  all  would  be  governed 
as  one  man  by  the  Lord,  being  like  the  members  and 
organs  of  our  body,  which,  although  diverse  in  their 
forms  and  functions,  have  nevertheless  relation  to  one 
heart  on  which  they  all  depend  both  in  general  and  in 
particular,  be  their  respective  forms  ever  so  various.  In 
this  case,  too.  every  one  would  say  of  another,  in  whatso- 
ever doctrine  or  in  whatsoever  external  worship  he  was 
principled,  This  is  my  brother;  I  see  that  he  worships 
the  Lord,  and  that  he  is  a  good  man." — Ibid.  n.  2385. 
14*  L 


HEA  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


"  Let  numbers  be  multiplied  even  to  thousands  and 
tens  of  thousands,  if  they  are  all  principled  in  charity  or 
mutual  love,  they  all  have  one  end,  namely,  the  common 
good,  the  kingdom  of  the  Lord,  and  the  Lord  himself.  In 
which  case  the  varieties  in  matters  of  doctrine  and  wor- 
ship, arc  like  the  varieties  of  the  senses  and  viscera  in 
man,  which  contribute  to  the  perfection  of  the  whole. 
For  then  the  Lord,  by  means  of  charity,  enters  into  and 
operates  upon  all,  with  a  difference  of  manner  accord- 
ing to  the  particular  temper  of  each  ;  and  thus  arranges 
all  and  every  one  into  order,  as  in  heaven  so  on  earth. 
And  thus  the  will  of  the  Lord  is  done  on  earth  as  it  is 
in  heaven,  according  to  what  He  himself  teaches." — A. 
C.  n.  1285. 


XIII. 

Tl/E  HUMAN  FORM  OF  HEAVEN. 

SWEDKNBORG  tells  us  repeatedly  that  heaven  is  in 
the  human  form.  Not  only  every  angel  and  every 
society  of  angels,  but  the  entire  angelic  heaven,  he  says, 
is  in  this  form  ;  so  that  the  angels,  viewed  collectively, 
appear  before  the  Lord  as  one  man.  To  cite  a  single 
passage : 

"The  entire  heaven  resembles  one  man,  who  is  there- 
fore also  called  the  Grand  Man  {Maximiis  Homo).  And 
what  is  wonderful  and  hitherto  unknown,  all  the  parts 
of  the  human  body  correspond  to  societies  in  heaven. 
Wherefore  it  has  been  occasionally  said  that  some  of 
those  societies  belong  to  the  province  of  the  head,  some 
to  that  of  the  eye,  others  to  that  of  the  breast,  and  so 
on."— A.  C.  n.  2853.  See  also  n.  684,  1276,  2996,  '8, 
3021,  3061. 


THE  HUMAN  FORM  OF  HEAVEN. 


163 


This,  we  are  aware,  has  an  odd  sound  to  the  ears  of 
most  people  when  they  hear  it  for  the  first  time.  Per- 
haps there  are  few  things  in  the  seer's  writings  which 
appear  more  arbitrary  or  fanciful — or,  to  some  minds, 
more  ridiculous.  It  is  usually  one  of  the  first  things 
which  an  opponent  of  his  teachings  seizes  upon  and 
flouts.  It  is  often  referred  to  as  sufficient  evidence  in 
itself  of  the  wild  and  fantastic  character  of  his  teachings. 
Thus  the  Rev.  Dr.  Pond,  in  his  "  Swedenborgianism  Re- 
viewed," after  devoting  two.or  three  pages  to  a  statement 
of  the  doctrine,  adds, — 

"  To  my  own  apprehension,  the  whole  account  is  su- 
premely ridiculous;  being  destitute  alike  of  sense  and 
decency,  and  worthy  only  of  contempt." — p.  196. 

Let  us  see,  then,  if  the  doctrine  be  either  ridiculous  or 
unreasonable.  But  first  let  us  endeavor  to  learn  what 
the  author  meant  that  we  should  understand  by  the  ex- 
pression, ]\Taxiinus  Homo. 

When  Svvedenborg  says  that  heaven  is  in  the  human 
form,  he  uses  the  word  form  in  the  sense  in  which  we 
use  it  when  speaking  of  civil,  social,  or  ecclesiastical 
affairs.  We  speak  of  a  form  of  government;  but  when 
such  expression  is  used,  no  one  thinks  of  any  visible 
shape,  but  of  the  nature  and  adjustment  of  the  various 
parts  composing  the  government.  A  person  who  reads 
and  understands  the  organic  law  of  the  state,  sees  therein 
its  form  of  government.  We  speak,  also,  of  the  form  of 
society  in  a  particular  age  or  nation  ;  and  by  this  is  meant 
the  nature  and  relation  of  its  several  parts — the  nature 
and  arrangement  of  its  social,  industrial,  commercial,  edu- 


164 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


cational,  artistic,  moral  and  religious  elements.  Again, 
we  speak  of  the  form  of  a  church,  or  of  church  polity ; 
and  by  this  we  mean  the  order,  relation,  subordination, 
etc.,  of  its  various  functionaries,  the  mode  of  their  ap- 
pointment, and  their  respective  duties. 

When  it  is  said,  therefore,  that  heaven  is  in  the  human 
form,  the  meaning  is  that  it  is  in  human  order;  that  all 
the  innumerable  societies  of  which  it  consists,  are  so 
arranged  and  adjusted  as  to  express  most  perfectly  the 
truly  human  principles  whigh  constitute  the  essential 
spirit  and  life  of  heaven.  In  other  words,  the  relation, 
mutual  dependence,  and  intercommunication  of  the  so- 
cieties composing  the  whole  angelic  heaven,  and  the  uses 
they  respectively  perform,  correspond  to  those  existing 
among  the  various  organs  of  the  human  body,  and  to 
their  respective  uses.  One  is  a  perfect  representative 
image  of  the  other. 

Accordingly,  Swedenborg  often  speaks  of  the  angelic 
societies  as  located  in  different  organs  of  the  Grand  Man; 
of  some  as  in  the  head,  some  in  the  heart,  some  in  the 
spleen,  some  in  the  liver;  and  of  others,  again,  as  in  the 
eye,  ear,  knee,  or  foot.  And  his  meaning  is,  that  such 
societies  correspond  to  these  bodily  organs ;  that  is  to 
say,  their  relation  to  the  other  societies  of  heaven  and 
the  special  functions  which  they  perform  in  the  Grand 
Man,  correspond  to  the  relation  existing  among  such 
bodily  organs,  and  to  their  respective  uses  in  the  human 
body. 

"It  has  also,"  he  says,  "been  given  me  to  know  what 
particular  angelic  societies  belong  to  each  particular 
province  of  the  body,  also  what  are  their  qualities ;  as, 


THE  HUMAN  FORM  OF  HEAVEN: 


165 


for  instance,  what  and  of  what  quality  belong  to  the 
province  of  the  heart;  what  and  of  what  quality  to  the 
province  of  the  lungs  ;  what  and  of  what  quality  to  that 
of  the  liver;  also  what  and  of  what  quality  to  the  differ- 
ent sensories,  as  the  eye,  the  ear,  the  tongue,  and  so  on." 
— A.  C.  n.  2998. 

It  thus  becomes  plain  what  he  means  when  he  says 
that  heaven  is  in  the  human  form.  It  is  a  spiritual  and 
not  a  natural  idea  which  he  is  endeavoring  to  express. 
And  when  we  sliall  have  fairly  grasped  his  meaning,  and 
duly  considered  the  subject,  we  shall  see  that  he  could 
have  employed  no  other  terms  which  would  express  so 
fully  and  with  such  precision  the  beautiful  and  orderly 
arrangement  of  the  whole  angelic  heaven,  and  the  har- 
monious relation  of  its  innumerable  and  diverse  societies. 

But  let  us  push  our  inquiry  a  little  further,  that  we 
may  see  more  clearly  the  ground  and  origin  as  well  as 
the  truth  of  this  disclosure. 

Everything  that  exists  must  exist  in  some  form.  And 
the  forms  of  all  things  will  be  found  to  correspond  to 
their  essential  nature,  or  to  the  kind  of  life  that  de- 
termines their  forms.  The  form  always  corresponds  to 
the  essence.  The  ox,  the  eagle,  the  lion,  the  dove,  each 
has  a  form  suited  to  its  needs,  or  correspondent  to  its 
own  peculiar  life.  It  follows  that  the  higher  and  nobler 
the  life,  the  more  beautiful  and  perfect  will  be  the  form  ; 
otherwise  there  would  be  no  correspondence  of  one  with 
the  other. 

If  we  look  at  the  lowest  creatures  in  the  animal  king- 
dom, we  find  them  closely  allied  to  vegetables,  consist- 
ing of  few  parts,  and  these  comparatively  simple  in  their 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


structure.  Their  forms  are  inferior,  and  their  wants  and 
capacities  correspondingly  limited.  As  we  ascend  the 
scale  of  animated  nature,  we  find  a  gradual  increase  of 
wants  ;  powers  more  varied  ;  faculties  enlarged  and  multi- 
plied. And  corresponding  to  this  increase  of  desires  and 
enlargement  and  multiplication  of  faculties,  we  find  the 
forms  of  life  also  becoming  more  complex.  We  find 
them  rising  above  the  earth,  provided  with  the  means  of 
locomotion,  and  simulating,  in  degrees  more  or  less  re- 
mote, the  human  form  ;  until  at  length  we  arrive  at  man, 
the  last  link  in  the  great  chain  connecting  all  below  him 
with  all  above.  Created  to  stand  erect,  with  his  feet  upon 
the  earth  and  his  face  toward  heaven,  he  alone  is  capable 
of  looking  above  himself,  and  of  intelligently  reciprocat- 
ing or  giving  back  the  love  and  wisdom  which  flow  from 
God.  In  man,  therefore,  the  circle  of  life  is  complete. 
In  a  state  of  order  he  is  the  image  and  likeness  of  his 
Maker.  He  is  the  complex,  therefore,  of  all  the  powers 
and  gifts  of  other  creatures,  with  the  two  human  faculties 
— liberty  and  rationality — superadded. 

Now  it  is  because  human  life  is  the  highest  and  noblest 
kind  of  life — because  human  wants  are  more  numerous, 
and  the  human  faculties  more  enlarged,  exalted,  and 
varied  than  those  of  any  other  creature,  that  the  human 
form  through  whose  instrumentality  alone  these  faculties 
can  manifest  themselves,  is  the  very  perfection  of  all 
forms.  God  himself,  who  is  the  perfection  of  all  that  is 
human,  is  in  this  form.  He  is  a  perfect  Divine  Man. 
In  Him  everything  truly  human  exists  in  infinite  fulness, 
variety  and  perfection.  Therefore  when  He  manifested 
Himself  on  earth  to  the  eye  of  sense,  He  appeared  in  the 


THE  HUM  AX  FORM  OF  HE. I  VEX. 


human  form.  And  when  in  more  ancient  times  He  filled 
the  body  of  an  angel  with  his  own  Divine  life,  and  thus 
became  manifest  to  the  spiritual  senses  of  his  chosen 
seers  as  "  the  angel  of  Jehovah,"  his  form  was  always 
the  human. 

And  it  is  a  Divinely-revealed  truth  that  man  was 
created  in  the  image  and  likeness  of  God.  His  form, 
therefore,  is  one  capable  of  receiving  and  expressing,  in 
a  finite  degree,  something  of  that  truly  human  life  which 
flows  from  the  Divine  Humanity.  This  life  when  re- 
ceived, becomes  in  man  the  life  of  love  to  the  Lord  and 
charity  toward  the  neighbor.  And  this  is  the  essential 
life  of  heaven.  Other  creatures  below  man  may  receive 
and  enjoy  lower  degrees  of  life  ;  but  he  alone  can  receive 
and  enjoy  this  higher  or  heavenly  life,  because  he  alone 
is  in  the  human  form.  And  the  more  we  receive  of  this 
life,  the  more  truly  human  we  become  in  our  thoughts, 
feelings,  dispositions  and  purposes;  and  the  more  faith- 
fully do  we  express  through  our  human  form — by  our 
looks,  words  and  actions — the  love  and  wisdom  which 
are  the  essential  constituents  of  true  humani'.y.  For  the 
most  beautiful  and  perfect  human  form  is  that  which  best 
expresses  the  purest  and  most  exalted  human  love. 

And  as  it  is  with  a  single  individual,  so  with  a  society 
or  community — with  men  in  the  aggregate.  The  more 
of  true  human  life  each  member  of  a  community  receives, 
or  the  more  each  one  suffers  himself  to  be  governed  by 
the  highest  good  and  truth,  the  more  orderly,  industrious, 
united,  healthy  and  happy  is  that  community.  The  more 
truly  human  does  it  become  in  its  form,  organization  and 
activities.    It  appoints  its  wisest  men  to  preside  over  its 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


interests,  because  every  one  is  aiming  to  subject  himself 
to  the  government  of  the  highest  good  and  truth.  And 
so  the  form  or  order  of  that  community  becomes  more 
and  more  human.  All  its  corporate  acts  express  more 
and  more  faithfully  the  human  thoughts  and  feelings 
with  which  the  minds  of  its  individual  members  are  im- 
bued. Such  community  is  in  the  human  form,  therefore, 
just  so  far  as  the  individual  minds  composing  it  are  truly 
human.  It  is  the  tendency  of  true  human  life,  wherever 
it  exists,  to  mould  the  collective  as  well  as  the  individual 
man  into  a  corresponding  human  form. 

But  a  consideration  of  the  wonderful  mechanism  of 
the  human  body,  and  of  the  mutual  dependence  of  its 
various  parts,  will  furnish  the  best  idea  of  the  human 
form,  and  reveal  most  clearly  the  order  of  heaven.  For 
as  the  body  in  its  entircness  corresponds  to  the  soul,  so 
its  different  parts  correspond  to  the  various  faculties  and 
functions  of  the  soul,  or  to  the  goods  and  truths  of  heaven 
in  their  various  orders  and  degrees.  Therefore  the  bodily 
organs  correspond  to  the  various  societies  of  which  the 
whole  angelic  heaven  is  composed,  and  which  are  the 
living  embodiment  of  these  goods  and  truths. 

On  a  careful  survey  of  the  human  system,  we  find  it 
composed  of  numerous  parts  which  are  all  different  from 
each  other.  Its  structure  is  the  most  complex  of  any 
object  in  the  universe.  There  is  no  other  created  thing 
which  consists  of  so  many  parts ;  yet  no  two  of  these 
parts  are  found  to  be  precisely  alike.  Some  of  them 
differ  widely  both  in  form  and  function.  But,  notwith- 
standing the  endless  number  and  diversity  of  parts,  they 
arc  all  mutually  dependent,  mutually  adapted  to  each 


THE  HUMAN  FORM  OF  HEAVEN.  1 69 


other's  wants,  and  work  together  in  admirable  harmony. 
Every  organ  however  minute,  has  its  post  assigned  it, 
and  its  appropriate  work  given  it  to  do  The  brain, 
heart,  liver,  pleura,  the  lungs,  pancreas,  and  abdominal 
viscera — how  different  are  these  from  each  other  in 
their  form  and  structure  !  How  different  also  in  their 
functions,  or  in  the  work  given  them  to  do  !  Yet  how 
admirably  do  they  harmonize!  What  entire  unanimity 
among  these  numerous  and  diverse  parts  !  What  per- 
fect concert  of  action ! — all  the  more  perfect  because  of 
their  diversity.  With  what  beautiful  brotherly  love  do 
they  all  work  together,  and  what  tender  regard  has  each 
for  the  welfare  of  all  the  rest !  If  one  is  out  of  order, 
all  the  others  are  more  or  less  uncomfortable.  If  one 
suffers,  all  the  rest  sympathize  and  suffer  with  it.  It  is 
a  law — and  herein  we  have  a  beautiful  illustration  of  the 
great  law  of  brotherhood — that  each  shall  discharge  its 
appropriate  function,  not  apart  from  the  others  and  for 
the  sake  of  itself  alone,  but  in  harmony  with  and  for  the 
welfare  of  all  the  rest.  And  the  more  faithfully  it  labors 
to  do  this,  the  more  does  it  promote  its  own  health  and 
strength,  as  well  as  the  health  and  strength  of  the  other 
members.  The  welfare  of  each  is  linked  indissolubly 
with  that  of  all  the  others.  One  life  pervades  them  all, 
and  each  receives  and  enjoys  that  life  in  proportion  as 
it  respects  and  faithfully  works  for  the  good  of  the 
whole.  The  moment  one  ceases  to  do  its  work,  or  ap- 
propriates more  than  its  share  of  the  juices  elaborated, 
or  more  than  it  needs  to  fit  it  for  the  performance  of  its 
appointed  use,  that  moment  comes  disease — disease  to 
itself  and  disease  to  all  the  rest.  And  if  it  persevere  in 
'5 


170 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


this  abnormal  course,  sooner  or  later  death  ensues. 
Such  is  the  law,  fixed  and  unalterable.  There  is  no 
escape  from  it.  And  what  a  striking  exemplification 
does  it  furnish  of  the  great  law  of  spiritual  life,  the  law 
of  neighborly  love ! — yes,  and  the  sure  consequence  of 
a  persistent  violation  of  this  law. 

Although  one  life  pervades  all  the  bodily  organs, 
they  do  not  all  receive  it  alike.  Their  receptivity  is  as 
various  as  their  forms.  Some  receive  it  in  a  higher 
degree  than  others,  and  perform  more  important  and 
varied  functions,  and  may  therefore  be  said  to  be  of  a 
higher  grade.  And  so  there  are  gradations  of  rank 
among  the  members  of  the  body.  No  one  is  entirely 
independent  of  the  rest.  No  one  is  so  high  that  it  can 
dispense  with  the  services  of  the  most  humble,  and  no 
one  so  low  that  it  cannot  do  something  to  promote  the 
health  and  strength  of  the  highest.  The  head  needs 
the  foot,  and  the  heart  the  hand,  no  less  than  the  foot 
needs  the  head  or  the  hand  the  heart.  Even  the  hair 
and  nails  and  the  coarse  cuticle  on  the  soles  of  the  feet 
have  their  use,  and  add  to  the  beauty,  completeness  and 
perfection  of  the  whole. 

Behold,  here,  then,  in  the  human  body,  a  representa- 
tive image  of  heaven  ! — the  most  perfect  image  of  order, 
harmony,  unity,  freedom,  mutual  dependence  and  broth- 
erly love!  The  relation  of  the  bodily  organs  to  each 
other,  and  the  uses  they  respectively  perform,  are  as  the 
relation  existing  among  the  angelic  societies,  and  their 
respective  uses ;  because  heaven  as  a  whole  and  in  each 
of  its  parts,  is  in  the  human  form.  And  notwithstand- 
ing there  are  in  heaven  as  in  the  human  body  grada- 


THE  HUMAN  FORM  OF  HEAVEN. 


171 


tions  of  rank  and  office,  notwithstanding  some  there 
have  more  important  functions  to  perform  than  others, 
there  is  no  pride  or  disdain  on  the  one  hand,  nor  envy 
or  huniiUation  on  the  other,  any  more  than  among  the 
different  members  of  the  body.  Notwithstanding  there 
exist  authority  and  obedience,  there  is  nothing  like  tyr- 
anny on  the  one  hand  or  slavishness  on  the  other. 
There  is  the  most  perfect  freedom  coupled  with  un- 
speakable bliss ;  for  every  one  acts  as  his  ruling  love 
prompts,  but  he  loves  nothing  which  is  not  good  and 
true.  Be  his  office  high  or  low,  he  does  precisely  that 
which  he  is  qualified  to  do  best,  and  in  the  doing  of 
which  he  finds  a  pure  delight.  Conscious  that  he  could 
not  be  so  useful  or  happy  in  any  other  sphere,  he  has 
no  desire  to  be  anywhere  or  anything  else  than  he  is. 
Whatever  there  is,  therefore,  of  exaltation  or  subordi- 
nation, of  authority  or  obedience  there,  neither  is  felt 
or  thought  of  as  such,  any  more  than  in  the  human 
body. 

From  what  has  been  said,  we  trust  that  Swedcnborg's 
meaning,  when  he  says  that  heaven  is  in  the  human 
form,  will  be  sufficiently  plain.  And  although  the  heav- 
enly societies  are  innumerable,  and  all  different  from 
each  other,  yet  there  exists  the  most  perfect  union 
among  them — a  union  corresponding  to,  and  beautifully 
symbolized  by,  that  among  the  different  organs  of  the 
human  body.  And  herein  is  revealed  the  true  nature 
of  that  union  among  Christians  on  earth,  to  which  the 
Lord  refers  when  He  speaks  of  his  disciples  being  made 
"  perfect  in  one."  It  is  a  union  of  parts  that  are  as 
different  as  are  the  different  members  of  the  human 


172 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


body;  parts  animated,  nevertheless,  by  one  and  the 
same  hfe,  as  in  the  case  of  the  bodily  organs ;  for  the 
essential  life  of  all  in  heaven,  is  the  life  of  love  to  the 
Lord  and  the  neighbor. 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  the  human  form  is  the  most 
perfect  of  all  forms.  And  if  the  Lord's  disciples  (and 
surely  those  composing  the  heavenly  societies  are  to  be 
reckoned  as  such)  are  "made  perfect  in  one,"  then  must 
the  whole  heaven  of  angels  be  in  the  human  form ;  and 
the  doctrine  of  the  Grand  Man  as  revealed  through 
Swedenborg,  must  be  true.  For  under  any  other  form 
than  the  human,  or  arranged  in  any  other  order  than 
that  of  the  different  parts  of  the  human  body,  the  heav- 
enly societies  could  not  be  said  to  be  "  perfected  into 
one;"  since  their  arrangement  would  be  less  beautiful 
and  orderly  and  their  union  less  perfect  than  it  might 
be. 

Then  the  testimony  of  the  great  Apostle  to  the  Gen- 
tiles might  be  cited  in  corroboration  of  the  truth  of  this 
doctrine.  Writing  to  the  Church  at  Rome,  he  says : 
"  For  as  we  have  many  members  in  one  body,  and  all 
members  have  not  the  same  office,  so  we,  being  many, 
are  one  body  in  Christ."  (Rom.  xii.  4,  5.)  Again  to 
the  Corinthian  Church  :  "  For  the  body  is  not  one  mem- 
ber, but  many ;  and  ye  are  the  body  of  Christ,  and 
members  in  particular."  He  further  says  there  is  no 
schism  among  the  bodily  members,  and  there  ought 
not,  therefore,  to  be  any  in  the  body  of  Christ ;  that  the 
various  parts  or  members  of  this  body  (the  church), 
"  should  have  the  same  care  one  for  another." 

How  the  church  on  earth  ought  to  be,  and  so  far  as 


THE  HUMAN  FORM  OF  HEAVEN. 


it  is  a  true  and  living  church  it  will  be,  an  image  of 
heaven.  And  Paul,  in  the  passages  referred  to,  plainly 
teaches  that  the  church  of  Christ  is  in  the  human  form  ; 
that  its  various  parts  or  members,  in  their  mutual  rela- 
tion and  dependence,  correspond  to  the  different  parts 
of  the  human  body.  And  if  many  persons  on  earth — 
all  of  them  disciples  of  the  Lord — are  "  one  body  in 
Christ,  and  every  one  members  one  of  another,"  should 
not  the  same  be  true  in  heaven  ?  Should  not  the  diver- 
sity be  even  greater  there  than  in  the  church  on  earth, 
and  the  harmony  and  union  at  the  same  time  more 
complete  ?  and  the  form  or  order  of  heaven,  therefore, 
more  perfectly  human  than  that  of  the  church  ? 

What,  now,  are  the  practical  considerations  suggested 
by  this  disclosure  ? — for  it  has  important  practical  bear- 
ings. What  is  its  legitimate  tendency  ?  Plainly  to  en- 
large and  liberalize  the  mind  that  accepts  it,  and  to  im- 
part to  the  affectiouG  something  of  that  breadth  and  ex- 
pansiveness  which  characterize  the  Lord's  all-encircling 
love.  It  shows  us  that  there  are  innumerable  kinds  and 
degrees  of  good  and  truth  in  heaven,  all  derived  from 
the  infinity  of  the  Divine  Goodness;  endless  diversity 
of  character  and  state  even  among  the  angels,  and  conse- 
quently a  place  somewhere  in  the  abodes  of  the  blessed, 
for  every  one  who  has  within  him  anything  of  the  life 
of  heaven,  hovi^ever  humble  in  quality  or  limited  in  de- 
gree. It  is  opposed,  therefore,  to  everything  like  nar- 
rowness, bigotry,  sectarianism,  or  exclusiveness.  It 
encourages  us  to  look  chiefly  at  the  essential  things  of 
religion, — the  spirit  and  the  life  of  heaven, — and  to  regard 
as  of  comparatively  small  consequence  whatever  does 
15* 


174 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


not  lead  to  or  in  some  way  promote  these.  It  rebukes 
the  natural  disposition  to  make  ourselves  the  standards 
of  all  excellence,  and  to  judge  the  character  of  others 
by  our  own  peculiar  views  and  feelings;  and  does  not 
allow  us  to  depreciate  another's  good  because  it  differs 
from  our  own  in  kind  or  in  degree.  It  teaches  us  that 
good  people  are  not  all  alike ;  that,  although  so  differ- 
ent sometimes  as  to  be  quite  uncongenial  to  each  other, 
they  may,  nevertheless,  belong  to  the  great  body  of 
Christ, — may  dwell,  as  to  their  spirits,  in  the  same  Heav- 
enly Father's  house,  although  in  different  apartments. 

The  doctrine  further  teaches  that  the  most  perfect 
union,  harmony,  peace  and  good-fellowship  are  compat- 
ible with  great  diversity  of  character,  rank,  occupation 
and  office;  that  this  diversity,  indeed,  renders  the  union 
and  harmony  all  the  more  perfect  when  the  different 
parts  in  the  social  body  are  duly  adjusted,  and  one  life 
pervades  them  all.  It  shows  us  that  gradations  of  rank 
and  character  may  exist  without  pride,  disdain,  or  tyr- 
anny on  the  one  hand,  or  envy,  jealousy,  or  humiliation 
on  the  other ;  and  that  these  very  gradations  furnish 
wider  scope  for  the  infinitely  diversified  powers  of  man, 
and  multiply  and  strengthen  the  ties  that  bind  the  hu- 
man race  together.  Its  tendency  is  to  make  us  regard 
as  honorable  every  position  and  occupation  in  life  which 
is  useful ;  to  lead  every  one  to  desire  and  seek  just  that 
sphere  of  usefulness  which  his  gifts  of  body  and  mind 
best  qualify  him  to  fill ;  and  whether  that  sphere  be 
high  or  low — in  the  head  or  foot,  the  eye  or  hand  of 
the  social  body — to  work  there  contentedly  and  faith- 
fully, forever  thankful  that  he  is  a  man. 


THE  HUMAN  FORM  OF  HEAVEN. 


Let  this  doctrine  be  generally  accepted  and  devoutly- 
believed,  and  what  a  change  would  speedily  be  wrought 
by  it  in  nearly  all  existing  churches !  How  quickly 
would  bigotry,  intolerance,  and  belittling  sectarianism 
— all  doleful  creatures  of  the  night — take  their  depart- 
ure, as  owls  and  bats  retire  at  the  approach  of  dawn  ! 
For  all  agree  that  the  Church  on  earth  ought  to  be, 
and  in  a  state  of  true  order  ivill  be,  somewhat  like  the 
church  in  heaven.  All  Christians,  indeed,  pray  for  this. 
Accepting,  therefore,  the  new  doctrine  of  the  human 
form  of  heaven  —  the  doctrine  of  endless  diversity 
coupled  with  completest  harmony  and  unity  —  they 
would  no  longer  aim  at  perfect  uniformity  in  things 
pertaining  to  the  church,  for  they  would  see  that  no 
such  uniformity  exists  in  heaven.  They  would  see  that 
perfect  agreement  in  doctrine  or  ritual  (save  in  two  or 
three  fundamentals)  is  neither  to  be  expected  nor  de- 
sired ;  that  variety  everywhere — in  the  spiritual  no  less 
than  in  the  natural  realm — is  the  Divine  order.  And 
seeing  this,  they  would  allow  and  encourage  the  utmost 
freedom  of  thought  and  inquiry  on  religious  or  doctri- 
nal questions,  not  deprecating  but  cordially  welcoming 
whatever  diversity  might  result  from  such  freedom. 
Prejudice  against  new  ideas,  or  against  writings  said  to 
contain  them,  would  everywhere  be  condemned  and 
frowned  upon  as  a  hindrance  to  religious  progress. 

Thus  would  bigotry  and  intolerance  be  banished  from 
the  churches,  and  in  their  place  would  come  a  grand 
catholicity,  broad  and  beautiful  as  that  in  heaven.  In- 
stead of  antagonistic  sects  warring  against,  fretting  and 
weakening  each  other,  we  should  have,  out  of  many 


176 


HEA  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


and  diverse  communions,  one  harmonious  and  united 
Church;  not  one  in  doctrine,  discipline  and  form  of 
external  worship,  but  one  in  spirit, — one  in  the  real  and 
practical  acknowledgment  of  the  Lord  and  his  Word, — 
a  Church  all  the  more  beautiful  and  perfect,  because  of 
the  endless  diversity  among  its  component  parts. 

It  cannot  be  denied,  therefore,  tliat  this  doctrine  of 
the  human  form  of  heaven,  is  good  and  wholesome  in 
its  practical  tendency.  And  what  stronger  evidence  of 
its  truth  could  any  one  desire  than  this  ?  No  such 
beneficent  results  could  flow  legitimately  from  a  doc- 
trine which  is  itself  false.  "  Of  a  bramble-bush  men  do 
not  gather  grapes,"  "  neither  can  a  corrupt  tree  bring 
forth  good  fruit." 


XIV. 

A  HEAVEN  FOR  THE  NON-CHRISTIAN  WORLD. 

IT  will  not  be  denied  that,  since  the  memorable  year 
-  "757 — the  alleged  date  of  the  last  General  Judgment 
— the  human  race,  especially  throughout  Christendom, 
has  enjoyed  a  steadily  increasing  degree  of  enlighten- 
ment on  religious  as  well  as  on  all  other  subjects.  .The 
new  angelic  heaven  has  been  pressing  with  continually 
augmenting  force  upon  all  minds — pressing  in  every  di- 
rection like  a  subtle  and  elastic  atmosphere.  And  under 
the  influence  of  this  pressure,  a  gradual  change  in  theo- 
logic  thought  has  been  going  on  in  the  minds  of  indi- 
viduals and  churches.    The  theology  of  Swedenborg's 


A  HEAVEN  FOR  GENTILES. 


177 


day  has  undergone  important  modifications,  and  the 
change  is  still  in  progress.  The  theology  of  the  present 
time  as  it  exists  in  the  popular  mind  (however  it  may 
remain  unaltered  in  the  creeds)  is  quite  different  from 
that  of  the  last  generation.  Hence  it  is  not  uncommon 
to  meet  with  persons  nowadays,  who  disbelieve  and  re- 
ject many  of  the  doctrines  set  forth  in  the  very  creeds 
they  have  subscribed.  And  others  who  still  profess 
loyalty  to  the  "standards,"  are  found  giving  to  their 
creed  a  very  different  interpretation  from  that  clearly 
intended  by  its  original  framers. 

This  is  one  of  the  hopeful  signs  of  our  times : — A 
green  and  tender  leaf  on  the  fig-tree,  which  proclaims  a 
spiritual  summer  nigh.  In  the  fluctuation  and  modifica- 
tion of  religious  beliefs  which  we  see  going  on  around 
us,  there  is  abundant  cause  for  joy  and  hope.  It  is  be- 
cause the  fountains  of  the  great  deep  in  men's  minds  are 
breaking  up,  and  the  windows  of  heaven  are  opening, 
and  increasing  light  from  out  the  new  angelic  heavens 
is  bursting  upon  the  world,  that  such  things  are  coming 
to  pass.  It  is,  moreover,  a  verification  of  what  Swe- 
denborg  foresaw  and  predicted  more  than  a  century 
ago. 

"  In  consequence  and  by  means  of  the  Last  Judg- 
ment," he  says,  "the  communication  between  heaven 
and  the  world,  or  between  the  Lord  and  the  church,  has 
been  restored. 

"  The  state  of  the  Vv^orld  and  of  the  church  before  the 
Last  Judgment  was  as  evening  and  night,  but  after  it  as 
morning  and  day. 

"  After  the  Last  Judgment  was  accomplished,  there 
was  joy  in  heaven,  and  such  light  in  the  world  of  spirits 


178 


HKA  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


as  was  not  there  before.  .  .  A  similar  light  also  arose  in 
men  in  the  world,  giving  them  new  enlightenment." — 
Contin.  L.  J.  1 1,  13,  30. 

Now,  because  of  the  changes  in  religious  thought 
here  referred  to,  it  is  difficult  to  say  what  is  the  present 
prevailing  belief  among  Christians  respecting  the  con- 
dition of  the  non-Christian  world  in  the  Hereafter.  But 
the  general  belief  in  Swedenborg's  day  was,  that  all  the 
heathen  (unless  converted  to  Christianity  before  dying) 
must  perish  everlastingly.  Archbishop  Crannier  says: 
"  If  we  should  have  heathen  parents,  and  die  without 
bajjtism,  we  should  be  damned  everlastingly."  And 
Noel's  catechism,  regarded  as  high  authority  in  the 
Church  of  England,  says  :  "Without  the  church  [mean- 
ing outside  of  the  church  professing  the  Christian  re- 
ligion] there  can  be  nothing  but  damnation  and  death." 
This  was  the  declared  doctrine  also  of  the  Council  of 
Trent,  was  held  by  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  and 
believed,  too,  by  Luther  and  Calvin.  The  latter  says  : 
"Without  her  bosom  [that  is,  outside  the  pale  of  the 
Christian  Church]  no  remission  of  sins  or  salvation  is 
to  be  hoped  for." — Ed.  Harold  Brozunc's  Expn.  of  39  Ai'ti- 
clcs,  p.  447,  TV.  Y.  Ed.  1865. 

Then,  if  we  read  attentively  the  letters  from  foreign 
missionaries  and  the  reports  of  Missionary  Societies,  or 
note  the  expressions  used  in  prayers  and  sermons  at 
meetings  held  in  aid  of  the  cause  of  foreign  missions, 
we  cannot  fail  to  see  that  the  belief  is  still  clung  to  by 
Protestant  Christians,  that  the  myriads  in  the  heathen 
world,  unless  converted  to  Christianity,  are  all  doomed 
to  hell.   Besides,  this  belief  is  a  strictly  logical  inference 


A  HEAVEN  FOR  GENTILES. 


179 


from  some  of  the  doctrines  of  the  former  Christian 
church  regarded  as  fundamental  and  essential,  such  as 
the  doctrine  of  vicarious  atonement,  and  justification  and 
salvation  by  faith  alone. 

The  evidence,  therefore,  is  abundant  and  undeniable, 
that  the  general  and  well-nigh  universal  belief  both 
of  Roman  Catholic  and  Protestant  Christians  prior  to 
Swedenborg's  time,  was,  that  all  of  the  non-Christian 
or  Gentile  world  who  die  unconverted  to  Christianity, 
must  inevitably  be  lost,  and  forever  suffer  the  torments 
of  the  damned. 

We  need  not  stop  to  show  the  unreasonableness  and 
cruelty  of  such  a  doctrine;  nor  how  it  mars  the  beauty 
of  the  Divine  character,  and  militates  against  every  right 
conception  of  God's  love  and  justice.  This  must  be  suf- 
ficiently apparent  to  all.  To  suppose  that  God  would 
permit  hundreds  of  millions  of  human  beings  to  be  born 
in  regions  where  He  knew  they  would  live  and  die  with- 
out any  belief  in  the  Gospel  of  our  Lord,  or  any  knowl- 
edge even  of  the  existence  of  such  a  Gospel,  and  that 
He  would  provide  no  means  for  the  salvation  of  these 
innumerable  hosts ;  and  to  suppose,  further,  that  they 
are  all  to  be  doomed  to  eternal  hell  torments  for  not 
believing  doctrines  which  they  never  had  the  opportu- 
nity of  learning,  were  a  supposition  so  extreme  in  its 
unreasonableness,  that  we  can  only  wonder  it  should 
ever  have  been  entertained  for  a  moment  by  any  sane 
people.  The  belief  is  too  absurd  and  revolting  to  merit 
a  serious  refutation.  Talk  about  Swedenborg's  madness  ! 
Why,  if  he  had  ever  taught  anything  half  so  absurd  and 
monstrous  as  this  old  dogma,  once  so  generally  accepted 


i8o 


HE  A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


among  Christians,  there  would  indeed  have  been  good 
ground  for  such  imputation. 

Let  us  now  hear  the  New  Church  doctrine  on  this 
subject,  as  revealed  through  the  illumined  Swede.  And 
if  you  consider  the  general  darkness  of  the  period  in 
which  he  lived  as  compared  with  our  own  times,  you 
can  the  more  easily  judge  whether  his  claim  to  have 
written  under  a  special  Divine  illumination,  be  or  be 
not  well  founded. 

"  It  is  a  common  opinion  that  those  who  are  born  out 
of  the  church,  who  are  called  Heathen  or  Gentiles,  can- 
not be  saved,  because  they  have  not  the  Word  and  are 
therefore  ignorant  of  the  Lord,  without  whom  there  can 
be  no  salvation.  Nevertheless  it  may  be  known  that 
they  also  are  saved,  from  these  considerations  alone: 
that  the  mercy  of  the  Lord  is  universal,  that  is,  extended 
toward  every  individual ;  that  they  are  born  men  as  well 
as  those  within  the  church,  who  are  respectively  few ; 
and  that  it  is  no  fault  of  theirs  that  they  are  ignorant 
of  the  Lord. 

"  Every  person  who  thinks  from  enlightened  reason, 
may  see  that  no  man  is  born  for  hell ;  for  the  Lord  is 
love  itself,  and  it  is  agreeable  to  his  love  that  all  be 
saved.  Therefore  also  He  has  provided  that  all  shall 
have  some  kind  of  religion,  and  thereby  be  in  the  ac- 
knowledgment of  a  Divine,  and  in  the  enjoyment  of 
interior  life:  for  to  live  according  to  religion  is  to  live 
interiorly.  For  then  man  looks  up  to  a  Divine  ;  and 
as  far  as  he  looks  up  to  a  Divine  he  does  not  esteem  the 
world,  but  removes  himself  from  it,  consequently  from 
the  life  of  the  world,  which  is  exterior  life. 

"That  Gentiles  are  saved  as  well  as  Christians,  may 
be  known  to  those  who  understand  what  it  is  that  makes 
heaven  in  man.  For  heaven  is  in  man  ;  and  those  who 
have  heaven  in  themselves  enter  heaven  after  death.  It 


A  HEAVEN  FOR  GENTILES.  l8l 

is  heaven  in  man  to  acknowledge  a  Divine  and  be  led 
by  Him. 

"  It  is  known  that  Gentiles  live  a  moral  life  as  well 
as  Christians,  and  that  many  of  them  live  better  than 
Christians.  Men  live  a  moral  life  either  for  the  sake  of 
the  Divine,  or  from  a  ret^jard  to  the  opinion  of  the  world. 
The  moral  life  which  is  lived  for  the  sake  of  the  Divine 
is  spiritual  life.  Both  appear  alike  in  the  external  form, 
but  in  the  internal  they  are  altogether  different.  One 
saves  man  ;  the  other  does  not.  For  he  who  lives  a 
moral  life  from  a  regard  to  the  opinions  of  the  world, 
is  led  by  himself  But  let  this  be  illustrated  by  an  ex- 
ample. 

"  I  have  often  been  instructed  that  Gentiles  who  have 
led  a  moral  life,  have  lived  in  obedience  and  subordina- 
tion, and  in  mutual  charity  according  to  their  religion, 
and  have  thence  received  something  of  conscience,  are 
accepted  in  the  other  life,  and  are  there  instructed  with 
anxious  care  by  angels  in  the  goods  and  truths  of  faith  ; 
and  that,  while  under  instruction,  they  behave  themselves 
modestly,  intelligently  and  wisely,  and  willingly  receive 
truths  and  are  imbued  with  them.  Besides,  they  have 
formed  to  themselves  no  principles  of  the  false  contrary 
to  the  truths  of  faith,  v/hich  are  to  be  shaken  off,  much 
less  scandals  against  the  Lord, — like  many  Christians 
who  cherish  no  other  idea  of  Him  than  that  of  a  com- 
mon man." — H.  H.  n.  318-321. 

"The  mercy  of  the  Lord  is  infinite,  and  does  not  suf- 
fer itself  to  be  confined  to  the  small  number  within  the 
church,  but  extends  itself  to  all  throughout  the  world. 
For  those  who  are  born  out  of  the  church,  and  are  thereby 
in  ignorance  as  to  matters  of  faith,  are  not  blamable  on 
that  account;  nor  are  they  ever  condemned  for  not  hav- 
ing faith  toward  the  Lord,  because  they  are  not  aware 
of  his  existence.  What  considerate  person  can  suppose 
the  greatest  part  of  mankind  must  perish  eternally,  be- 
16 


l82 


HEA  VEN  RE  VEAI.ED. 


cause  they  were  not  born  in  that  quarter  of  the  globe 
denominated  Europe,  which  respectively  contains  so  few? 
Or  that  the  Lord  would  permit  so  great  a  multitude  of 
human  beings  to  be  brought  into  existence  to  perish  in 
eternal  death  ?  This  would  be  alike  contrary  to  the  Di- 
vine nature  and  to  mercy.  Besides,  those  who  are  out 
of  the  church  and  are  called  Gentiles,  live  a  much  more 
moral  life  than  those  within  the  church,  and  far  more 
easily  embrace  the  doctrine  of  a  true  faith.  This  is  very 
evident  from  the  state  of  souls  in  another  life  ;  for  the 
worst  of  all  are  those  who  come  from  the  so-called  Chris- 
tian world,  bearing  mortal  hatred  both  against  their 
neighbor  and  the  Lord,  and  being  more  addicted  to  adul- 
tery than  any  other  people  on  the  face  of  the  earth." — 
A.  C.  1032. 

This,  remember,  conies  professedly  as  a  revelation  on 
the  subject  we  are  considering.  And  what  shall  we  say 
of  it  ?  That  it  is  unreasonable  ? — senseless  ? — indicative 
of  some  strange  hallucination  on  the  part  of  the  seer? 
On  the  contrary,  it  is  so  perfectly  in  accord  with  the  dic- 
tates of  reason  and  common  sense,  that  the  rejection  of 
it,  or  even  a  doubt  about  its  truth,  would  seem  to  indi- 
cate a  mental  condition  closely  allied  to  insanity.  Since 
God  is  love,  He  can  never  forsake  any  portion  of  the 
children  of  men.  He  can  never  be  indifferent  to  their 
welfare.  He  can  never  cease  his  efforts  to  save  and  bless 
them.  If  He  should,  that  moment  He  would  lose  or 
lay  aside  his  most  distinguishing  attribute  :  He  would 
cease  to  be  Infinite  Love.  For  it  is  in  the  very  nature 
of  this  love  to  be  "  long-suffering,"  "  plenteous  in  mercy 
and  truth,"  "  not  willing  that  any  should  perish,  but  that 
all  should  come  to  repentance."  And  it  is  in  the  nature 
of  Divine  Wisdom  to  adapt  its  teachings  to  mankind  in 


A  HEAVEN  FOR  GENTILES. 


183 


their  various  stages  of  development  and  of  moral  dis- 
order. When,  therefore,  man  perverts  the  highest  truths, 
and  extinguishes  in  himself  their  light  and  life,  then 
truths  of  a  lower  order  are  given  him — truths  better 
suited  to  his  lower  and  perverse  state  ;  and  Infinite  Love 
seeks  to  secure  his  obedience  to  these.  And  when, 
through  the  perversion  of  these,  he  sinks  to  a  still  lower 
or  more  external  state,  then  truths  of  a  yet  lower  degree 
are  mercifully  vouchsafed  him. 

Thus  the  Lord,  in  the  plenitude  of  his  wisdom  and 
love,  forever  adapts  his  truth  to  the  states  of  all  finite 
minds.  Evermore  does  He  impart  to  all  his  human  off- 
spring as  much  and  as  pure  truth  as  they  are  able  to  re- 
ceive. And  when  they  fall  into  states  to  profane  the 
highest  truths,  then  these  are  mercifully  taken  from  them  ; 
or  what  is  equivalent,  their  eyes  are  veiled,  as  it  were, 
so  that  they  may  not  see  or  acknowledge  them  to  be 
truths.  As  it  is  written  :  "  He  hath  blinded  their  eyes 
and  hardened  their  heart;  that  they  should  not  see  with 
their  eyes,  nor  understand  with  their  heart,  and  be  con- 
verted, and  I  should  heal  them."    (John  xii.  40.) 

This  is  as  true  of  nations  as  it  is  of  individuals.  Hence 
no  nation  has  ever  been  left  without  a  religion  of  some 
sort,  nor  without  some  religious  truth.  And  the  form 
which  religion  takes  in  any  age  or  country,  and  the  char- 
acter and  amount  of  religious  truth  which  is  acknowl- 
edged, will  depend  on  the  general  state  of  the  people, 
and  be  suited  to  their  state.  And  more  and  higher  truth 
will  be  given  them  so  soon  as  they  are  prepared  to  re- 
ceive it. 

None  of  the  heathen  nations,  therefore,  arc  left  wholly 


II EA  VEjV  re  VEALED. 


destitute  of  religious  truth.  With  all  the  errors  and  ab- 
surdities in  the  Mahometan  and  Pagan  religions,  there 
are  to  be  found  many  important  truths,  many  wholesome 
precepts,  many  laws  of  heavenly  charity.  And  all  who 
obey  these  laws  from  a  principle  of  religion,  are  thereby 
saved  from  the  evils  they  forbid.  And  not  only  this, 
but  fidelity  to  the  little  truth  they  know,  prepares  them 
for  the  reception  of  more  and  higher  truth  when  they 
enter  the  other  world.  A  person  may  be  born  amid 
such  surroundings  that  he  will  be  brought  up  in  great 
ignorance  and  even  in  the  belief  of  great  errors,  and  yet 
be  preserved  in  a  state  of  child-like  innocence.  And  as 
this  is  a  state  receptive  of  wisdom,  such  person  will 
readily  receive  instruction  in  the  world  of  spirits,  and 
be  there  fitted  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  in  the  way  that 
children  are.  We  may  thus  see  how  it  is  possible  for 
people  in  the  non-Christian  nations,  to  be  finally  admit- 
ted into  heaven,  notwithstanding  the  many  errors  they 
imbibed  on  earth.  Indeed  they  may,  on  account  of  their 
greater  innocence  and  simplicity,  receive  instruction  in 
the  other  world  more  readily  than  many  Christians. 

"  Occasionally,"  says  Swcdenborg,  "  it  has  been  grant- 
ed me  to  converse  with  Christians  in  another  life  con- 
cerning the  state  and  lot  of  the  Gentiles  out  of  the  church, 
that  they  receive  the  truths  and  goods  of  faith  more  easily 
than  Christians  who  have  not  lived  according  to  the 
Lord's  precepts;  and  that  Christians  think  cruelly  con- 
cerning them  in  supposing  that  all  who  are  out  of  the 
church  arc  damned,  and  this  in  consequence  of  a  received 
canon,  that  out  of  the  Lord  there  is  no  salvation  ;  and 
tliat  this  is  true,  but  that  the  Gentiles  who  have  lived  in 
mutual  charity,  and  have  done  what  is  just  and  equitable 


A  HEAVEN  FOR  GENTILES. 


from  a  kind  of  conscience,  in  another  life  receive  faith 
and  acknowledge  the  Lord  more  easily  than  they  who 
are  within  the  church  and  have  not  lived  in  such  charity; 
also  that  Christians  are  in  a  false  principle  in  supposing 
that  they  alone  have  heaven,  because  they  have  the  book 
of  the  Word  written  on  paper  but  not  in  their  hearts ; 
and  that  they  know  the  Lord,  and  yet  do  not  believe 
Him  Divine  as  to  his  Human,  yea,  acknowledge  Him 
only  as  a  common  man  as  to  his  other  essence  which 
they  call  the  human  nature ;  and  on  this  account  when 
they  are  left  to  themselves  and  their  knowledges,  do  not 
even  adore  Him  ;  and  therefore  they  are  the  people  who 
are  out  of  the  Lord,  for  whom  there  is  no  salvation." — - 
A.  C.  n.  4190. 

"All  the  good  of  charity  even  among  the  Gentiles,  is 
seed  from  the  Lord  ;  for  although  they  have  not  the 
good  of  faith  as  those  within  the  Church  (where  the 
Word  is)  may  have,  yet  they  are  nevertheless  capable 
of  receiving  it.  Such  Gentiles  as  have  lived  in  charity 
in  the  world,  as  they  are  wont  to  do,  embrace  and  re- 
ceive the  true  faith  or  the  faith  of  charity,  much  more 
readily  than  Christians,  when  they  are  instructed  there- 
in by  angels  in  another  life." — Ibid.  n.  932.  See  also  n. 
1032,  9256;  A.  E.  n.  1 180;  D.  P.  330. 

It  is  as  true  of  Pagan  as  of  Christian  nations,  that 
they  have  more  truth  than  they  arc  careful  to  obey.  In 
every  nation  upon  earth  men's  beliefs  are  better  than 
their  practice.  The  religious  code  of  Pagans  as  well  as 
of  Christians  is  far  better  than  the  general  character  of 
the  people.  He  who  walks  according  to  the  light 
vouchsafed  him,  does  all  that  the  Lord  requires  of  him. 
No  one  can  be  held  accountable  for  disobeying  truth 
of  which  he  is  ignorant,  especially  if  his  ignorance  be 
no  fault  of  his.  Therefore  a  wrong  which  a  man  does 
16* 


i86 


HRAVEN  REVEALED. 


ignorantly,  is  not  a  sin.  Sin  implies  a  knowledge  of 
the  law  transgressed.  It  consists  in  disobedience  to 
known  and  acknowledged  truth.  If  we  ignorantly  trans- 
gress, we  feel  very  different  from  what  we  should  if  we 
did  the  same  act  with  a  full  knowledge  at  the  time  that 
we  were  violating  a  divine  law.  Is  it  reasonable,  then, 
that  those  born  in  Pagan  lands  should  be  forever 
doomed  to  darkness  and  woe,  because  of  their  non- 
obedience  to  truth  which  they  never  heard  of? 

No:  God  is  a  Being  infinitely  wise  and  just.  And 
all  that  such  a  Being  can  require  of  individuals  or  na- 
tions, be  they  Jews,  Mahometans,  Pagans  or  Christians, 
is,  that  they  live  according  to  the  light  they  have.  And 
all  who  do  so  live,  will  finally  be  received  into  heaven  ; 
for  by  their  religious  obedience  to  the  few  truths  they 
know  they  are  prepared  to  receive  more  and  purer 
truths  in  the  world  of  spirits. 

Such,  briefly,  is  the  doctrine  revealed  through  Swe- 
dcnborg  on  this  subject;  a  doctrine  that  fully  accords 
with  our  highest  conception  of  the  Divine  character  and 
attributes,  as  well  as  with  the  dictates  of  reason  and 
common  sense. 

And  not  less  clearly  does  the  doctrine  agree  with  the 
teachings  as  well  as  witli  the  entire  spirit  of  Holy  Scrip- 
ture. The  Word  of  God  simply  requires  us  to  walk 
according  to  the  light  that  is  given.  "  While  ye  have 
light,  believe  in  the  light,  that  ye  may  be  the  children 
of  light,"  saith  the  Lord  (John  xii.  36).  And  we  really 
believe  in  the  light,  only  when  we  walk  according  to  it 
(H.  H.  35 1  ;  A.  C.  4239  ;  A.  R.  67  ;  A.  E.  346).  "  Walk 
while  ye  liavc  the  light."    Those  to  whom  the  light  of 


A  HEAVEN  FOR  GEXTILES. 


187 


the  Gospel  has  not  come,  cannot  walk  according  to  it, 
and  are  not,  therefore,  to  be  judged  by  it.  For  what  is 
it  that  brings,  or  on  whom  is  pronounced,  the  sentence 
of  condemnation  ?  The  Lord  answers  :  "  This  is  the 
condemnation,  that  light  is  come  into  the  world,  and 
men  loved  darkness  rather  than  light,  because  their  deeds 
were  evil."  (John  iii.  19.)  From  which  it  is  plain  that 
there  can  be  no  condemnation  where  the  light  has  not 
come;  for  condemnation  consists  in  a  rejection  of  the 
light  when  offered.  Neither  is  sin  imputed  to  those 
who  err  through  ignorance  ;  for  the  Lord  further  says  : 
"  If  I  had  not  come  and  spoken  unto  them,  they  had  not 
had  sill."  (John  xv.  22.)  And  that,  in  the  day  of  final 
adjudication  every  one  will  be  held  accountable  for  only 
that  measure  of  truth  which  has  been  vouchsafed  him, 
is  plain  from  these  words  of  the  Lord :  "  And  that  ser- 
vant who  knew  his  Lord's  will,  and  prepared  not,  nei- 
ther did  according  to  his  will,  shall  be  beaten  with 
many  stripes.  But  he  that  knew  not,  and  did  commit 
things  worthy  of  stripes,  shall  be  beaten  with  few  stripes. 
For  unto  whomsoever  much  is  given,  of  him  shall  much 
be  required ;  and  to  whom  men  have  committed  much, 
of  him  will  they  ask  the  more."  (Luke  xii.  47,  48.) 
Equally  conclusive,  too,  is  the  apostle's  testimony,  and 
clearly  teaching  the  very  same  doctrine :  "  Of  a  truth," 
he  says,  "I  perceive  that  God  is  no  respecter  of  persons; 
but  in  every  natioji  he  that  feareth  Him  and  worketh 
righteousness,  is  accepted  with  Him."  (Acts  x.  34,  35.) 
Which  is  virtually  saying  that  there  are  some  righteous 
and  God-fearing  people  in  every  nation,  and  that  all 
such  will  be  saved. 


i88 


HEAVEX  REVEALED. 


And  so  we  find  the  teaching  of  the  Bible  to  agree 
with  that  of  Swcdenborg  on  this  subject;  and  the  tes- 
timony of  both  to  be  in  complete  accord  with  the  whole 
spirit  of  the  Christian  religion  as  well  as  with  the  verdict 
of  enlightened  reason. 

And  not  only  does  Swedenborg  teach  that  the  hea- 
then may  be  saved,  but  he  says  that  more  of  them  act- 
ually are  saved  than  of  those  who  profess  the  Chris- 
tian religion ;  and  he  tells  us  why. 

"It  is  a  very  common  thing  with  those  who  have 
conceived  an  opinion  respecting  any  truth  of  faith,  to 
judge  of  others  that  they  cannot  be  saved  but  by  believ- 
ing as  they  do,  which  nevertheless  the  Lord  forbids. 
Matt.  vii.  I,  2.  Accordingly  it  has  been  made  known 
to  me  by  much  experience  that  persons  of  every  re- 
ligion are  saved,  if  so  be,  by  a  life  of  charity,  they  have 
received  remains  of  good  and  of  apparent  truth.  .  .  The 
life  of  charity  consists  in  man's  thinking  well  of  others, 
and  desiring  good  to  others,  and  perceiving  joy  in  him- 
self at  the  salvation  of  others.  But  they  have  not  the 
life  of  charity,  who  are  not  willing  that  any  should  be 
saved  but  such  as  believe  as  they  themselves  do,  and 
especially  if  they  are  indignant  that  it  should  be  other- 
wise. This  may  appear  from  this  single  circumstance, 
that  more  are  saved  from  the  Gentiles  than  from  among 
the  Christians;  for  such  of  the  Gentiles  as  have  thought 
well  of  their  neighbor,  and  lived  in  good-will  to  him, 
receive  the  truths  of  fiith  in  another  life  better  than 
they  who  are  called  Christians,  and  acknowledge  the 
Lord  more  gladly  than  Christians  do;  for  nothing  is 
more  delightful  and  happy  to  the  angels,  than  to  in- 
struct those  who  come  from  earth  into  another  life." — 
A.  C.  n.  2284;  also,  1059. 

This,  we  doubt  not,  will  have  a  strange  sound  to  the 


A  HEAVEN  EOK  GENTILES. 


189 


ears  of  many  who  have  been  educated  in  the  old  theol- 
ogies, and  who  hear  it  now  for  the  first  time.  But  is  it 
not  both  reasonable  and  Scriptural  ?  Does  it  not  ac- 
cord with  these  words  of  the  Lord?  "And  I  say  unto 
you  that  many  shall  come  from  the  east  and  west,  and 
shall  sit  down  with  Abraham  and  Isaac  and  Jacob  in 
the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Rut  the  children  of  the  king- 
dom shall  be  cast  out  into  the  outer  darkness."  (Matt, 
viii.  II,  12.  See  also  Luke  xiii  24-31.)  By  "the  chil- 
dren of  the  kingdom  "  are  plainly  meant  those  who 
have  the  Word,  and  who  imagine  (as  did  the  Jews)  that, 
for  this  reason  alone,  they  would  be  saved  in  preference 
to  those  who  have  it  not  (as  in  the  case  of  the  Gentiles), 
and  who  have  not  therefore  eaten  and  drunk  in  the 
Lord's  presence,  nor  heard  his  voice  in  their  streets. 
And  by  the  "  many  "  who  would  come  from  the  four 
quarters  and  find  a  welcome,  while  "the  children  of  the 
kingdom  "  would  be  thrust  into  the  outer  darkness,  are 
as  plainly  meant  the  Gentiles — the  non-Christian  peo- 
ples who  have  not  the  written  Word. 

And  not  only  does  Swedenborg  teach  that  fewer  are 
saved  from  among  Christians  than  from  among  the  Gen- 
tiles, but  that  the  worst  of  all  the  devils  in  hell  are  from 
the  Christian  nations.  "  This  I  can  aver,"  he  says,  "  that 
they  who  come  into  the  other  life  from  the  Christian 
world,  are  the  worst  of  all,  hating  their  neighbor,  hating 
the  faith,  and  denying  the  Lord  ;  for  in  the  other  life  the 
heart  speaks,  and  not  the  lips  merely.  Besides,  they 
are  more  given  to  adultery  than  the  rest  of  mankind." 
—A.  C.  1885  ;  also  1032. 

But  while  the  worst  of  the  devils  go  from  Christian 


HE  A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


countries,  so  likewise  do  the  best  of  the  angels.  Those 
from  among  Christians  who  go  to  heaven,  rise  to  a 
higher  state  than  do  the  good  from  among  Gentiles, 
while  those  who  are  lost  sink  to  a  deeper  hell.  How 
can  it  be  otherwise  ?  For  Christians,  being  in  posses- 
sion of  the  Word,  have  a  greater  amount  of  truth  than 
the  Gentiles,  and  truth  of  a  higher  order  and  a  purer 
quality.  And  the  higher  and  purer  the  truth,  the  higher 
the  state  to  which  those  will  rise  who  receive  and  live 
according  to  it.  The  truths  of  the  Christian  religion 
are  deeper  and  more  heart-searching  than  those  of  any- 
other  religion.  Therefore  strict  obedience  to  these 
truths  must  bring  the  richest  reward — must  develop  the 
highest  and  noblest  life.  And  on  the  other  hand  they 
who  know  but  disobey  these  truths,  commit  greater  sin 
than  those  can  who  are  ignorant  of  them.  They  sin 
against  greater  light.  They  become  more  wicked; 
therefore  they  sink  to  a  deeper  hell, — are  beaten  with 
more  stripes.  This  is  in  accordance  with  the  universal 
law,  that  the  better  a  thing  is,  the  worse  are  the  conse- 
quences resulting  from  its  abuse.  What  Swedenborg 
says,  therefore,  about  the  worst  of  the  devils  being  from 
Christian  countries,  is  altogether  reasonable. 

His  statement  on  this  point,  too,  is  corroborated  by 
well-established  historical  facts.  For  it  is  matter  of  his- 
tory that  scenes  of  the  most  dismal  horror  which  the 
sun  ever  shone  upon,  have  been  enacted  in  Christian 
lands ;  that  the  blackest  crimes  which  the  page  of  his- 
tory records,  have  been  perpetrated  within  the  bounds  of 
Christendom.  Can  there  be  any  doubt,  then,  that  the  very 
worst  spirits  in  the  other  world,  arc  from  Christian  lands  ? 


./  HEAVEN  FOR  GENTILES. 


191 


Such  is  the  doctrine  revealed  through  Swedcnborg 
concerning  the  state  of  the  Heathen  in  the  great  Here- 
after,— very  different,  we  see,  from  that  hitherto  believed 
and  taught  in  the  Christian  church.  A  doctrine  truly 
catholic  in  its  spirit,  wholesome  in  its  tendency,  bound- 
less as  God's  love  in  its  embrace,  and  in  complete  agree- 
ment with  Holy  Scripture  and  enlightened  reason.  It 
assures  us  that  the  Lord  has  left  none  of  his  intelligent 
creatures  without  sufficient  light,  if  they  follow  it,  to 
guide  them  to  the  realms  of  bliss.  It  declares  that 
people  of  every  nation  and  creed,  be  they  civilized  or 
barbarous,  may  be  saved  and  are  saved  so  far  as  they 
live  according  to  the  truths  they  know;  and,  further- 
more, that  the  worst  of  all  the  devils  in  hell  are  from 
Christian  countries ;  and  that  those  who  live  under  the 
noonday  light  of  the  Gospel,  may  be  lost  and  arc  lost 
if  they  walk  not  according  to  that  light. 

Thus  the  new  doctrine  affirms  this  momentous  truth — 
a  truth  often  reiterated  in  the  writings  of  the  great  seer, 
and  which  deserves  to  be  engraven  indelibly  on  every 
heart — that  entrance  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven  de- 
pends not  upon  what  people  knoiv,  but  upon  how  they 
live ;  not  upon  the  character  or  amount  of  the  truth 
they  believe,  but  upon  the  motive  and  measure  of  their 
obedience  to  its  requirements ;  not  upon  the  brilliancy 
of  the  light  that  illumines  their  pathway,  but  upon  their 
fidelity  and  sincerity  in  following  the  light.  Therefore 
"  while  ye  have  the  light,  believe  in  the  light,  that  ye 
may  be  the  children  of  light,"  saith  the  Lord.  And  the 
only  genuine  and  saving  belief,  is  that  which  avails  to 
the  renovation  of  the  heart  and  life ;  for  "  with  the  heart 


192 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


man  believeth  unto  righteousness."  And  Swedcnborg 
often  says  that  a  genuine  belief,  or  belief  in  the  Lord, 
involves  obedience  to  the  Divine  precepts,  and  can  have 
no  existence  without  it.    To  cite  a  single  passage : 

"  By  believing  in  the  Lord,  man  has  conjunction  with 
Him,  and  by  conjunction,  salvation.  To  believe  in  Him, 
is  to  have  confidence  that  He  will  save;  and  because  no 
one  can  have  .such  confidence  but  he  who  leads  a  f^iwd 
life,  therefore  this  also  is  meant  by  believing  in  Him." 
—A.  R.  67.  See  also  T,  C.  R.  n.  151  ;  A.  C.  8g6,  9239; 
A.  E.  349. 


XV. 

ARE  EARTHLY  RELATIONSHIPS  CONTINUED  IN 
HEA  VEN? 

HAVING  ascertained  the  law  that  determines  all 
associations  in  the  Hereafter,  an  interesting  ques- 
tion arises:  Are  the  ties  of  natural  consanguinity  con- 
tinued in  heaven  ?  In  other  words,  Will  those  who  have 
sustained  on  earth  the  relation  of  parents  and  children, 
brothers  and  sisters,  husbands  and  wives,  dwell  together 
(supposing  they  all  become  regenerate)  in  the  same  an- 
gelic society,  and  maintain  a  similar  relation  toward 
each  other  in  heaven  to  that  they  bore  on  earth  ?  Or 
will  these  natural  relationships  cease  with  the  death  of 
the  body,  and  new  relationships  take  their  place  ? 

There  is  something  surpassingly  beautiful — some- 
thing, indeed,  holy — in  the  ties  that  bind  kindred  and 
friends  together  on  earth.    Every  one  recognizes  the 


CESSATION-  OF  EARTHLY  RELATIONSHIPS.  I93 


beauty  and  sacredness  of  these  ties.  The  links  in  that 
chain  of  love  formed  by  the  members  of  a  happy  family, 
how  golden  and  precious  !  The  affection  between  broth- 
ers and  sisters,  how  cordial  and  sincere  !  The  love  of 
children  for  their  parents,  how  sweet  and  confiding ! 
The  love  of  parents  for  their  children,  how  deep  and 
tender  !  The  affection  between  husband  and  wife,  how 
beautiful  and  holy ! 

These  natural  relationships  image  more  faithfully  than 
anything  else  can,  the  higher  and  enduring  spiritual  re- 
lationships which  exist  in  heaven.  The  relation  of  the 
children  to  each  other,  affords  the  truest  type  of  the  fra- 
ternal relation  existing  between  the  members  of  an  an- 
gelic society.  The  relation  of  children  to  their  parents 
— their  affection  for  them,  their  dependence  upon  them, 
and  their  obedience  to  the  parents'  every  wish  and  word 
— furnishes  the  best  idea  of  the  relation  of  the  angels 
to  the  Lord,  of  their  affection  for,  their  dependence  upon, 
and  their  obedience  to,  the  Heavenly  Father.  The  rela- 
tion of  the  parents  to  the  children — their  tender  love 
and  ceaseless  care  for  them,  their  consideration  for  their 
weakness,  their  patience  with  their  faults,  and  their 
thoughtful  provision  for  all  their  wants,  what  a  beautiful 
image  is  this  of  the  relation  of  the  Lord  to  the  angels, 
of  his  infinite  love  and  ceaseless  care  for  them,  and  his 
bountiful  provision  for  all  their  wants ! 

Thus  does  a  loving,  well-ordered  and  happy  family 
furnish  the  truest  picture  of  heaven,  of  anything  known 
on  earth.  Such  a  family  is  itself  a  heaven  in  miniature. 
Accordingly  we  find  that,  in  the  written  Word  (which,  in 
its  true  sense,  treats  altogether  of  spiritual  things)  the 
17  N 


194 


HEA  VEX  RE  VEALED. 


terms  which  are  employed  in  all  languages  to  express 
the  most  intimate  and  tender  earthly  relationships,  are 
used  to  express  the  relationships  existing  in  heaven,  and 
among  heavenly-minded  people  on  earth.  Thus  God,  in 
respect  to  the  inmost,  paternal,  heaven-begetting  prin- 
ciple of  his  nature — Divine  Love — is  called  the  Heavenly 
Father.  And  in  his  relation  to  the  church,  or  to  those 
whose  hearts  have  become  wedded  to  Him  by  love  and 
obedience,  He  is  called  Bridegroom  and  Husband.  And 
those  thus  wedded  (which  is  the  case  with  all  who  have 
in  themselves  the  heavenly  marriage  of  good  and  truth) 
are  called  Mother,  Wife  and  Bride.  And  the  angels  and 
regenerate  men — all  who  are  born  of  this  heavenly  Fa- 
ther and  Mother,  that  is,  born  again,  "  born  from  above" 
— are  called  children.  They  are  God's  children,  begotten 
of  Him  in  his  own  image  and  likeness ;  and  viewed  in 
their  relation  to  each  other,  they  are  brethren,  and  are 
so  called  in  Scripture.  Thus  Jesus  says  to  his  disciples: 
"  One  is  your  Father — God  ;  and  all  ye  are  brethren." 

Here,  as  in  other  passages  of  Scripture,  we  are  taught 
that  there  are  spiritual  relationships  to  which  the  natural 
correspond,  and  of  which  they  are  the  representative 
image.  And  as  spiritual  things  are  superior  to  the 
natural  whereby  they  arc  shadowed  forth, — -the  spiritual 
sense  of  the  Word  superior  to  the  natural  sense, — the 
spiritual  world  superior  to  the  natural  world, — the  soul 
or  spirit  of  man  superior  to  the  body, — therefore  spiritual 
relationships  are,  and  must  needs  be,  superior  to  the 
natural.  They  are  more  interior,  more  enduring,  more 
perfect  and  blissful. 

Now,  when  the  natural  body  dies,  man  passes  (in  a 


CESSATION  OF  EARTHLY  RELATIONSHIPS. 


spiritual  body)  out  of  the  natural,  and  comes  consciously 
into  the  spiritual  realm.  He  leaves  behind  him  all 
natural  things ;  or,  what  is  equivalent,  he  passes  into  a 
realm  where  these  things  are  no  longer  seen  or  thought 
of.  He  leaves  the  natural  body ;  but  straightway  finds 
himself  in  the  enjoyment  of  superior  faculties  belonging 
to  a  superior  kind  of  body,  which  has  always  been  within 
the  natural — a  body  that  is  spiritual  and  substantial. 
He  leaves  the  natural  world ;  but  immediately  enters,  or 
has  opened  up  to  his  consciousness,  another  world  in 
which  all  things  are  more  real  and  substantial,  but  spir- 
itual in  their  nature.  He  leaves  the  natural  or  literal 
sense  of  the  Scripture,  that  is,  he  no  longer  sees  or  thinks 
of  this  sense  ;  but  he  comes  into  the  perception  and  un- 
derstanding of  a  vastly  higher  and  more  important  sense, 
viz.,  the  spiritual.  He  leaves  the  natural  memory,  that 
is,  the  memory  of  merely  natural  facts, — or,  what  is  the 
same,  this  memory  becomes  quiescent ;  but  a  new,  more 
interior  and  enduring  memory  is  then  developed,  viz., 
the  spiritual. 

Now  the  logical  inference  from  all  this  is,  that  natural 
relationships  terminate  when  the  body  dies,  and  new  and 
higher  relationships  are  then  established  ;  and  that  these 
new  relationships  rest  upon  higher  or  more  interior 
ground,  and  are  determined  by  people's  spiritual  resem- 
blance or  proximity  to  each  other.  The  members  of  the 
same  family  on  earth  are  said  to  be  closely  related ;  and 
they  are  so  naturally.  But  this  is  simply  a  flesh  and 
blood  relationship — often  nothing  more  ;  and  as  such, 
we  should  expect  it  to  cease  when  the  body  dies.  For 
members  of  the  same  family  are  often  quite  different  in 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


character.  Some  are  passionate  and  others  calm,  some 
bright  and  others  dull,  some  deceitful  and  others  frank 
— born,  too,  of  the  same  parents,  and  subjected  to  the 
same  nurture  and  discipline.  Naturally,  therefore,  they 
are  as  near  akin  as  they  can  be,  and  in  their  faces  they 
may  resemble  each  other.  But  spiritually  viewed,  there 
is  little  or  no  resemblance  between  them ;  they  are  wholly 
unlike,  and  have  no  moral  or  spiritual  affinity.  And  in 
view  of  the  law  that  governs  in  every  association  of 
spirits,  it  is  plain  that  they  would  have  no  desire  to  dwell 
together  in  the  spiritual  world.  Their  spheres  would  be 
mutually  repulsive,  and  their  society  mutually  disagree- 
able. 

The  conclusion,  therefore,  seems  irresistible,  that  the 
natural  relationships  of  this  world  will  not  be  continued 
in  the  world  beyond ;  but  that  new  relationships  based 
upon  interior  and  spiritual  resemblances,  will  be  estab- 
lished there.  The  legitimate  deductions  of  reason  bring 
us  to  this  conclusion.  Now  let  us  see  how  far  Sweden- 
borg's  disclosures  accord  with  these  deductions. 

"  Consociations  in  the  other  life  are  comparatively  like 
relationships  on  earth,  in  that  there  is  an  acknowledg- 
ment as  of  parents,  children,  brethren,  kinsfolk  and  con- 
nections ;  according  to  such  differences  is  their  love. 
The  differences  are  indefinite,  and  the  communicative 
perceptions  so  exquisite  as  to  admit  of  no  description, 
— no  respect  whatever  being  had  to  parents,  children, 
kinsfolk,  and  connections  on  earth,  nor  to  any  personal 
considerations  of  quality  or  character,  consequently  not 
to  dignities,  riches,  and  tiic  like,  but  only  to  the  differ- 
ences of  mutual  love  and  faith,  the  faculty  of  receiving 
which  each  had  obtained  from  the  Lord  during  his  abode 
in  the  world."— A.  C.  n.  685. 


CESSATION  OF  EARTHLY  RELATIOXSIIITS.  I97 


"  That  the  truths  of  the  church  are  called  brethren,  is 
manifest  from  this,  that  the  sons  of  Jacob  represented 
the  truths  of  the  church  in  the  complex.  That  in  ancient 
times  they  were  called  brethren  from  spiritual  affinity, 
is  because  the  new  birth  or  regeneration  made  consan- 
guinities and  affinities  in  a  degree  superior  to  the  natural 
birth ;  and  because  the  former  derive  their  origin  from 
one  Father,  namely,  from  the  Lord.  Hence  it  is,  that 
men  after  death  who  come  into  heaven,  do  not  any  longer 
acknowledge  any  brother,  nor  even  mother  or  father,  ex- 
cept from  good  and  truth  ;  according  to  these  they  enter 
there  into  new  fraternities  or  brotherhoods.  Hence  it 
is,  that  they  who  were  of  the  church  called  each  other 
brethren." — A.  C.  n.  6758. 

"  That  in  the  spiritual  world  or  heaven,  there  are  no 
other  consanguinities  and  affinities,  except  of  love  to  the 
Lord  and  neighborly  love,  or,  what  is  the  same  thing,  of 
good,  was  made  manifest  to  me  from  this  consideration: 
that  all  the  societies  which  constitute  heaven  and  which 
are  innumerable,  are  most  distinct  from  each  other,  ac- 
cording to  the  degrees  and  differences  of  love  and  of 
faith  thence  derived ;  also  from  this  circumstance,  that 
they  mutually  know  each  other,  not  from  any  affinity 
which  had  existed  in  the  life  of  the  body,  but  solely  from 
a  principle  of  good  and  truth  thence  derived.  A  father 
does  not  know  a  son  or  a  daughter,  nor  a  brother  a 
brother  or  sister,  nor  indeed  a  husband  a  wife,  unless 
they  have  been  principled  in  like  good.  They  meet,  in- 
deed, on  their  first  coming  into  another  life,  but  they  are 
soon  dissociated,  inasmuch  as  essential  good,  or  love  and 
charity,  determines  every  one  to  his  particular  society 
and  enrolls  him  in  it.  In  the  society  in  which  every  one 
is  enrolled,  consanguinity  commences  ;  and  thence  pro- 
ceed affinities  even  to  the  circumferential  parts." — Ibid, 
n.  3815. 

"  In  another  life,  all  are  consociated  according  to  affec- 
17* 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


tions,  and  they  who  are  consociated  constitute  a  brother- 
hood ;  not  that  they  call  themselves  brethren,  but  that 
they  are  brethren  by  conjunction.  Essential  good  and 
truth  in  another  life  make  what  is  called  on  earth  con- 
sanguinity and  relationship;  wherefore  they  correspond. 
For  goods  and  truths  considered  in  themselves  do  not 
acknowledge  any  other  father  but  the  Lord,  for  they  are 
from  Him  alone.  Hence  all  are  in  brotherhood  who  are 
in  goods  and  truths.  Nevertheless  there  are  degrees  ac- 
cording to  the  quality  of  goods  and  truths.  Tliese  de- 
grees are  signified  in  the  Word  by  brethren,  sisters,  sons- 
in-law,  daughters-in-law,  grandsons,  granddaughters,  and 
by  several  names  of  families.  On  earth,  however,  they 
are  so  named  in  respect  to  common  parents,  however 
they  differ  in  affections  ;  but  in  another  life  such  brother- 
hood and  relationship  is  dissipated,  and  they  all  come 
into  other  brotherhoods,  unless  on  earth  they  have  been 
in  similar  good.  At  first,  indeed,  they  generally  meet, 
but  in  a  short  time  are  disjoined;  for  gain  in  that  life 
does  not  consociate,  but,  as  was  said,  affection,  the  quality 
of  which  then  appears  as  in  clear  day." — A.  C.  n.  41 2 1. 

Here  as  elsewhere  it  will  be  seen  that  Swedenborg  is 
perfectly  consistent.  And  his  revealings  accord,  too, 
with  the  verdict  of  enlightened  reason  and  sound  phi- 
losophy. Had  he  told  anything  essentially  different,  its 
want  of  agreement  with  his  other  teachings,  as  well  as 
with  reason  and  philosophy,  would  have  been  at  once 
apparent.  It  also  would  have  lacked — what  it  now 
clearly  has — the  undeniable  support  of  Scripture.  For 
the  Bible  tells  of  other  and  higher  relationships  than 
those  of  flesh  and  blood.  It  declares  that  before  a  man 
can  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  he  must  be  born  again 
— "  not  of  blood,  nor  of  the  will  of  the  flesh,  nor  of  the 
will  of  man,  but  of  God  " — thus  clearly  teaching  us  that 


CESSATION  OF  EARTHLY  RELATIONSHIPS.      1 99 


there  is  a  higher  and  nobler  kind  of  birth  than  that  into 
the  realm  of  nature.  The  first  birth  is  natural,  the  sec- 
ond is  spiritual.  "  Howbeit,"  says  the  apostle,  "  that 
was  not  first  w  hich  is  spiritual,  but  that  which  is  natu- 
ral;  and  afterward  that  which  is  spiritual."  (i  Cor.  xv. 
46.) 

That  which  is  first  in  the  order  of  importance,  is  al- 
ways last  in  the  order  of  time.  The  fruit  comes  after 
and  never  before  the  flower.  The  development  of  the 
heavenly  is  always  subsequent  to  that  of  the  earthly  or 
corporeal  life.  The  angel  is  formed  out  of,  and  there- 
fore subsequent  to,  the  man.  Consequently  those  rela- 
tionships which  are  spiritual  in  their  nature,  or  which 
result  from  regeneration,  must  be  superior  to  those  re- 
sulting from  natural  generation.  They  must  be  akin  to 
the  relationships  existing  in  heaven.  Accordingly  the 
Lord  desires  that  we  shall  all  become  his  children — 
children  of  the  Heavenly  Father — his  spiritual  children, 
of  course.  And  He  tells  us  how  we  can  become  such, 
or  what  we  must  do  ;  and  among  other  things,  that  we 
must  be  willing,  if  need  be,  to  sunder  the  ties  of  natural 
kindred, — be  willing  to  forsake  father,  mother,  brothers, 
sisters,  wife,  children,  and  whatsoever  is  dearest  to  the 
natural  man,  for  his  sake.  He  counsels  his  disciples  to 
call  no  man  their  father  upon  earth;  adding:  "for  One 
is  your  Father  which  is  in  heaven ;  and  all  ye  are  breth- 
ren." And  at  another  time,  "  stretching  forth  his  hand 
toward  his  disciples,  He  said:  Behold  my  mother  and 
my  brethren  !  For  whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  my 
Father  which  is  in  heaven,  the  same  is  my  brother  and 
sister  and  mother."    (Matt.  xii.  49,  50.) 


200 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


Who  cannot  see  that  in  all  such  passages  it  is  a  spir- 
itual relationship  to  which  our  Lord  refers  ? — a  relation- 
ship resulting  from  the  new  spiritual  birth,  and  grounded 
in  spiritual  faith  and  love  ?  Such  is  the  only  kind  of 
relationship  (and  this  should  be  conclusive  of  the  whole 
question)  which  He  ever  recognizes  as  belonging  to  his 
kingdom  in  the  heavens.  And  what  other  relationship 
should  we  expect — what  other,  indeed,  can  there  be — 
in  a  kingdom  that  is  purely  spiritual  ? 


XVI. 

MEETING  AND  RECOGNITION  OF  FRIENDS  IN 
THE  HEREAFTER. 

IN  view  of  what  has  been  said  in  the  foregoing  chap- 
ter, questions  like  the  following  will  naturally  arise: 
Shall  we  not,  then,  meet  our  earthly  friends  in  the 
spiritual  world  ?  Shall  we  not  recognize  them  and  be 
recognized  by  them  in  return  ?  Will  not  the  mother 
meet  her  darling  child,  and  know  and  love  it  as  her 
own  ?  Will  not  husbands  and  wives,  brothers  and 
sisters,  meet  there  in  tender  and  loving  embrace,  and 
remember  and  renew  the  relation  they  sustained  in  the 
natural  world  ?  Is  not  the  desire  for  such  reunions  in 
the  Hereafter,  among  the  implanted  instincts  of  our  na- 
ture ?  And  in  seasons  of  sore  bereavement  do  we  not 
derive  support  and  solace  from  the  belief  that  this  natu- 
ral and  deep  desire  of  our  hearts  will  be  granted? 

Most  assuredly.    And  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt 


/REUNIONS  IN  THE  HEREAFTER. 


20I 


that  it  will  be  granted.  Every  implanted  instinct  of 
our  nature  will  have  its  demands  satisfied  in  the  spirit- 
ual world.  Ever)'  one  will,  therefore,  be  permitted  to 
see  and  recognize  the  friends  he  has  known  and  loved 
on  earth,  and  to  remain  in  their  company  so  long  as 
may  be  mutually  agreeable.  But  such  meeting  and  mu- 
tual recognition  in  the  Hereafter,  take  place  in  the  in- 
termediate state  or  world  of  spirits,  where  all  souls  go 
immediately  after  the  death  of  the  body.  This  is  neither 
heaven  nor  hell,  but  a  realm  or  state  between  the  two, 
like  the  world  in  which  we  are  now  living,  and  having 
communication  with  both.  This  is  the  realm  or  state 
in  which  they  find  themselves  immediately  after  leaving 
the  body,  for  bodily  death  effects  no  change  whatever 
in  the  character.  They  are,  when  they  first  awake  to 
consciousness,  in  a  state  precisely  similar  to  that  in 
which  they  were  before  death.  The  same  external 
thoughts  or  affections,  the  same  natural  or  external 
memory,  the  same  natural  desires  and  feelings  are  still 
alive  and  active.  Hence  the  reason  why  everything  on 
a  person's  entrance  into  the  other  world,  appears  there 
precisely  as  it  did  here ;  for  in  that  world  everything 
without  corresponds  to  the  individual's  own  state — to 
the  thoughts  and  feelings  within  him.  So  long,  there- 
fore, as  he  continues  in  the  same  external  state  in  which 
he  was  before  death,  will  he  see  around  him  objects 
similar  to  those  by  which  he  was  surrounded  on  earth, 
— so  similar,  indeed,  that  it  is  often  hard  for  a  person 
to  be  quickly  convinced  that  he  has  actually  passed 
through  the  gate  of  death.  And  he  will  have  precisely 
the  same  face  as  before ;  for  the  face  in  the  other  world 


202 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


corresponds  to  the  mental  state,  or  to  the  thoughts  and 
affections  that  are  present  and  active. 

It  is  in  the  world  of  spirits,  therefore,  where  all  are 
in  the  same  mental  state  in  which  they  were  when  on 
earth,  and  therefore  look  just  the  same,  that  friends  and 
natural  relatives  meet  and  converse,  and  share  each 
other's  society  so  long  as  their  intercourse  proves  mu- 
tually agreeable.  If  some  have  died  many  years  before, 
and  gone  to  their  final  home,  either  in  the  upper  or  the 
nether  realms  according  as  their  real  character  may 
have  been  heavenly  or  infernal,  they  are,  through  the 
Divine  mercy,  temporarily  remitted  into  the  world  of 
spirits ;  that  is,  they  are  brought  into  the  same  state  of 
exterior  memory,  thought  and  affection  in  which  they 
were  when  in  the  flesh;  consequently  their  faces  appear 
just  the  same  as  they  did  in  this  world.  In  this  state 
of  their  exteriors  it  may  be  mutually  agreeable  to  re- 
main in  each  other's  company  for  a  considerable  time. 
But  if  they  are  spiritually  and  internally  unlike,  the  dis- 
similarity will  shortly  reveal  itself,  and  they  will  not 
long  be  happy  in  each  other's  society.  As  the  interiors 
of  each  become  more  and  more  manifest  to  the  other, 
they  will  feel  a  mutual  repulsion,  and  will  desire  to  sep- 
arate. And  when  they  shall  have  come  fully  into  the 
state  of  their  interiors,  the  quality  of  which  determines 
the  kind  of  society  they  are  fitted  for,  then  whatever 
disagrees  with  their  ruling  loves  is  removed  from  their 
exteriors ;  their  external  memory  which  enabled  them 
when  on  earth  to  recall  their  relationship  and  all  be- 
longing to  it,  becomes  closed  or  quiescent;  and  their 
faces  take  on  an  expression  corresponding  to  the  char- 


REUNIONS  IN  THE  HEREAFTER. 


203 


acter  of  their  interiors.  And  when  their  interiors  are 
fully  laid  open,  if  their  characters  or  loves  are  different, 
they  will  not  only  be  disinclined  to  remain  together,  but 
will  appear  as  strangers  to  each  other.  Their  natural 
memory  being  lost  or  closed,  they  will  no  longer  re- 
member their  former  friendship  or  relationship;  nay, 
they  will  not  know  that  they  have  ever  seen  each  other 
before,  though  they  may  have  dwelt  for  years  beneath 
the  same  roof,  and  sustained  the  most  intimate  of  earth- 
ly relations.  Their  faces,  too,  will  appear  unfamiliar, 
being  no  longer  such  as  they  had  been  in  the  world,  but 
so  changed  as  to  be  the  images  of  their  ruling  loves. 

In  the  intermediate  state  or  world  of  spirits,  therefore, 
where  all,  being  still  in  externals,  appear  as  they  did  on 
earth,  friends  and  natural  relatives  meet  and  recognize 
each  other,  and  remain  together  as  long  as  they  desire. 
But  when  their  natural  memory  and  affections  have 
faded  or  become  quiescent,  and  they  have  entered  into 
the  state  of  their  interiors,  then  natural  relatives  cease 
to  be  remembered  or  thought  of;  and  if  their  charac- 
ters are  essentially  unlike,  they  will  no  longer  desire  to 
remain  together,  having  no  affinity  for  each  other. 

"Those  who  have  friends  and  acquaintances  in  the 
life  of  the  body,  all  meet  and  converse  together  in  the 
world  of  spirits,  when  they  desire  it;  especially  wives 
and  husbands,  and  also  brothers  and  sisters.  I  have  seen 
a  father  conversing  with  six  sons  whom  he  recognized  ; 
and  many  others  conversing  with  their  relations  and 
friends;  but  as  their  characters  were  dissimilar  in  con- 
sequence of  their  life  in  the  world,  after  a  short  time 
they  separated.  But  they  who  pass  from  the  world  of 
spirits  into  heaven  or  hell,  afterwards  see  each  other  no 


204 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


more,  nor  do  they  know  anything  about  each  other, 
unless  they  are  of  similar  disposition  from  similar  loves. 
They  see  each  other  in  the  world  of  spirits,  and  not  in 
heaven  nor  in  hell,  because  they  who  are  in  the  world 
of  spirits  are  brought  into  states  similar  to  those  which 
they  had  experienced  in  the  life  of  the  body,  being  led 
from  one  into  another ;  but  afterwards,  all  are  brought 
into  a  permanent  state  similar  to  that  of  their  ruling 
love ;  and  in  that  state  one  knows  another  only  from 
similitude  of  love;  for  similitude  conjoins,  and  dissim- 
ilitude separates." — H.  H.  n.  427;  see  also  A.  R.  153. 

In  accordance  with  what  is  here  taught  is  the  follow- 
ing, which  tells  us  why  those  who  have  been  closely 
related  on  earth,  will  ultimately  be  as  strangers  to  each 
other  in  the  world  beyond,  if  there  be  no  internal  like- 
ness— no  spiritual  relationship  between  them. 

"  When  the  spirit  of  man  first  enters  the  world  of 
spirits,  which  takes  place  shortly  after  his  resuscitation, 
he  has  a  similar  face  and  similar  tone  of  voice  to  what 
he  had  in  the  world,  because  he  is  then  in  the  state  of 
his  exteriors,  and  his  interiors  are  not  yet  disclosed. 
This  is  the  first  state  of  man  after  death.  But  afterwards 
his  face  is  changed  and  becomes  entirely  different,  as- 
suming the  likeness  of  his  ruling  affection  or  love  in 
which  the  interiors  of  his  mind  were  in  the  world,  and 
in  which  his  spirit  was  in  the  body.  ...  I  have  seen  some 
spirits  shortly  after  their  arrival  from  the  world,  and  knew 
them  by  their  face  and  speech  ;  but  when  I  saw  them 
afterwards,  I  did  not  know  them.  They  who  were  prin- 
cipled in  good  affections  a])peared  with  beautiful  faces, 
but  they  who  were  principled  in  evil  affections,  with  faces 
deformed;  for  the  spirit  of  man,  viewed  in  itself,  is  noth- 
ing but  his  affection  whereof  the  face  is  the  external 
form.  The  reason  also  why  the  face  is  changed,  is  be- 
cause in  the  other  life  no  one  is  allowed  to  counterfeit 


KEUXIOXS  IX  THE  HEREAFTER. 


205 


affections  which  arc  not  properly  his  own,  nor,  conse- 
quently, to  put  on  looks  which  are  contrary  to  his  real 
love.  All  in  the  spiritual  world,  therefore,  whoever  they 
maybe,  are  brought  into  such  a  state  as  to  speak  as  they 
think,  and  to  express  by  their  faces  and  gestures  the  in- 
clinations of  their  will.  Hence  the  faces  of  all  become 
the  forms  and  images  of  their  affections.  And  hence  it 
is  that  all  who  have  known  each  other  in  the  world,  know 
each  other  also  in  the  world  of  spirits,  but  not  in  heaven 
nor  in  hell."— H.  H.  n.  457. 

It  must  not  be  inferred,  however,  from  what  has  been 
said,  that  natural  relationships  are  necessarily  incom- 
patible with  spiritual ;  or  that  those  who  have  been 
closely  related  on  earth,  cannot  also  be  internally  re- 
lated, and  so  dwell  together  forever.  On  the  contrary, 
we  are  taught  that  those  who  have  been  near  and  dear 
to  each  other  in  the  flesh — members  of  the  same  family 
on  earth — may,  if  they  become  regenerated,  become 
still  nearer  and  dearer  to  each  other  in  heaven,  and  for- 
ever dwell  together  in  the  same  angelic  society.  We 
are  taught  that  marriages  7iiay  take  place  in  this  world 
upon  a  deep  spiritual  ground — that  is,  between  parties 
who  are  the  spiritual  complements  of  each  other.  Where 
this  is  the  case,  the  union  is  a  truly  conjugial  one — is  at 
once  both  spiritual  and  natural.  And  because  it  is  a 
union  of  souls  as  well  as  of  bodies,  therefore  the  death 
of  the  body  will  not  dissolve  it.  They  will  remain  uni- 
ted forever,  being  the  complements  of  each  other.  And 
their  union  in  heaven  will  be  more  full  and  complete, 
and  attended  with  delights  as  far  superior  to  those  that 
accompany  marriage  here  below,  as  heaven  is  superior 
to  earth  or  angels  superior  to  men.  This,  however, 
18 


206 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


only  when  there  is  a  union  of  souls  between  the  parties. 
If  the  union  is  merely  external,  and  the  two  have  no 
spiritual  affinity,  it  will  not  be  renewed  or  continued  in 
the  Hereafter. 

The  same  remarks  are  applicable  to  other  earthly  re- 
lationships. They  may  be,  and  sometimes  are,  continued 
in  heaven,  with  their  pleasures  refined,  their  joys  exalted, 
and  their  delights  immensely  increased.  This,  too,  is 
what  the  great  seer  teaches. 

"  Certain  souls,"  he  says,  "  who  were  with  me  [on  one 
occasion],  were  let  into  a  state  of  innocence,  from  which 
they  conversed  with  me  through  spirits  ;  and  they  con- 
fessed that  it  was  a  state  of  such  joy  and  gladness  that 
the  human  understanding  could  form  no  conception  of 
it,  for  it  was  their  very  inmosts  which  were  affected.  .  . 
They  were  with  those  who  had  been  their  parents,  grand- 
parents, and  ancestors,  that  is,  with  their  entire  family 
for  two  centuries  back.  They  were  admitted  together 
with  them  into  that  heaven,  and  their  joy  was  such  as 
cannot  possibly  be  described. — Spl.  D.  832,  '4. 

Such  is  Swedenborg's  teaching  concerning  the  meet- 
ing and  recognition  of  friends  in  the  Hereafter,  and  the 
continuance  or  cessation  of  natural  relationships.  Does 
it  sound  like  the  ravings  of  a  madman  or  the  utterances 
of  a  fanatic?  Stretch  your  imagination  to  the  utmost, 
and  see  if  you  can  conceive  of  any  different  view  that 
is  at  once  so  rational,  philosophical,  and  scriptural  as 
this. 

The  doctrine  here  disclosed  is  one  that  fully  meets 
the  demands  of  our  reason  as  well  as  of  our  God-im- 
planted desires  and  instincts.  It  satisfies  the  cravings 
of  even  the  strongest  natural  affection.    It  permits  the 


REihyjONS  IN  THE  HEREAFTER. 


207 


bereaved  wife  or  husband  to  indulge  the  fond  hope  of 
meeting  in  the  Hereafter  the  beloved  companion  gone 
before.  It  gives  to  all  who  are  bound  by  the  ties  of 
natural  consanguinity,  the  comforting  assurance  that 
when  death  snatches  from  their  embrace  some  dearly 
loved  one — a  parent,  child,  brother,  sister,  husband,  or 
wife — the  separation  will  be  but  for  a  season  ; — that  they 
may  confidently  rely  on  a  blissful  reunion  in  the  spiritual 
realm.  What  solace  there  is  in  such  assurance !  What 
balm  to  bereaved  affection  !  What  support  in  seasons 
of  deepest  sorrow! 

And  while  the  doctrine  deals  so  tenderly  with  the 
natural  affections,  while  it  ministers  all  the  comfort 
which  the  heart  is  capable  of  receiving  in  times  of  sore 
bereavement,  it  at  the  same  time  discloses  a  more  ex- 
alted and  heavenly  state  of  affection  than  the  natural, 
and  a  higher  and  holier  relationship  than  that  between 
members  of  the  same  family  on  earth.  It  teaches  that 
the  truest  and  holiest  brotherhood,  that  of  which  the 
natural  is  but  a  faint  image,  exists  between  those  who 
have  been  "born  from  above" — "born  of  the  Spirit" — 
and  have  become  children  of  the  Heavenly  Father.  It 
teaches  that  natural  relationships  cease  in  the  spiritual 
realm,  and  are  succeeded  by  higher  and  holier  relation- 
ships ;  that  natural  kindred,  when  they  come  fully  into 
the  state  of  their  interiors,  will  (if  they  are  spiritually 
far  asunder)  no  longer  see  or  know  each  other,  and  will 
lose  all  remembrance  of  their  earthly  relationship.  It 
thus  furnishes  a  rational  and  philosophical  solution  of  a 
problem  that  has  hitherto  embarrassed  theologians,  and 
been  a  trouble  to  many  pious  minds.   For  it  shows  us  that 


208 


HEAVEN'  REVEALED. 


those  who  enter  heaven  will  never  have  their  peace  dis- 
turbed by  the  harrowing  thought  that  some  of  their  near 
kindred  in  the  flesh  are  in  the  nether  realms ;  for  al- 
though this  may  be  true,  they  will  know  nothing  of  it, 
having  no  recollection  of  their  natural  kindred.  And 
if  their  states  are  very  unlike,  they  would  not  recognize 
them  should  they  see  them.  Their  voices  would  sound 
unfamiliar,  and  their  faces  would  be  as  the  faces  of 
strangers.  Though  kindred  in  the  flesh,  they  are  kin- 
dred no  longer;  for  the  flesh  and  all  its  belongings  have 
been  laid  aside. 

Thus  does  the  spiritual  in  all  things  transcend  the 
natural.  Thus  do  the  tenderest  earthly  relationships, 
having  fulfilled  their  appointed  use  on  earth,  fade  and 
die  out  from  the  memory  and  the  affections  in  the  great 
Hereafter;  and  in  their  stead  spring  up  those  higher 
and  nobler  spiritual  relationships,  determined  not  by  the 
accident  of  natural  birth,  but  by  the  new  birth  from 
Above,  and  the  consequent  proximity  or  likeness  to  the 
Heavenly  Father. 

Such  is  the  doctrine  as  revealed  for  the  New  Church 
on  this  subject.  While  it  accords  with  the  spirit  of  holy 
Scripture  and  with  all  we  know  of  the  Divine  character 
and  attributes,  it  agrees  also  with  the  highest  spiritual 
philosophy,  and  satisfies  the  sternest  demands  of  the 
understanding  and  the  intensest  longings  of  the  heart. 


PERSONAL  APPEARANCE  OF  THE  ANGELS.  209 


.  XVIL 

PERSONAL  APPEARANCE  OF  THE  ANGELS. 
f  THEN  a  traveler  in  a  foreign  land  writes  an  ac- 


V  V  count  of  his  travels,  he  is  expected  to  describe 
the  personal  appearance  of  the  people  he  visits,  as  well 
their  character,  manners  and  customs.  Without  such 
description  his  narrative  would  be  incomplete  and  un- 
satisfactory. So  natural,  indeed,  is  it  for  people  to  in- 
quire about  the  personal  appearance  of  those  whom  they 
know  only  from  the  lips  or  pen  of  another,  that  a  novelist 
would  never  think  of  dismissing  one  of  his  heroes  with- 
out gratifying  his  readers  on  this  point.  If  he  should, 
they  would  be  disappointed,  and  would  not  fail  to  note 
the  omission  as  a  conspicuous  defect  in  the  story. 

Now,  Swedenborg  professes  to  have  enjoyed  open  in- 
tercourse with  the  denizens  of  the  spiritual  world  for  a 
period  of  nearly  thirty  years.  He  claims  to  have  daily 
seen  and  conversed  with  both  angels  and  devils  during 
this  long  period.  If  this  is  true,  we  should  expect  him 
to  say  something  about  the  personal  appearance  of  the 
people  he  saw  there — to  tell  us  how  they  look,  whether 
beautiful  or  ugly.  And  this  he  has  not  failed  to  do.  He 
says  that  the  inhabitants  of  heaven  are  all  in  the  human 
form,  and  beautiful  beyond  the  power  of  language  to  de- 
scribe. And  he  has  told  us  why  they  are  so  beautiful. 
Their  figures  and  faces,  he  says,  are  the  very  images  of 
the  spirit  that  animates  and  moulds  them.  They  are  the 
correspondential  forms  of  their  elevated  thoughts,  sweet 
affections  and  noble  purposes.  For  Mind  is  the  con- 
18*  O 


2IO 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


troUng  power  throughout  the  universe;  and  so  entire 
and  absolute  is  its  sway  in  the  spiritual  world,  that  the 
minds  of  all,  both  in  heaven  and  in  hell,  mould  their 
bodies  into  forms  exactly  correspondent  to  their  essential 
nature.  The  face  of  every  one  there,  is  the  image  of  the 
spirit  within  him.  The  appearance  of  the  outer  procfaims 
with  undeviating  certainty  the  character  of  the  inner 
man;  for  there  the  body  and  the  soul  are  in  such  perfect 
correspondence  that  the  former  is  the  exact  image  of  the 
latter.  VVe  will  cite  the  seer's  own  language  on  this  sub- 
ject : 

"  The  human  form  of  every  man  after  death  is  the 
more  beautiful,  the  more  interior!}^  he  had  loved  divine 
truths  and  lived  according  to  tliem  ;  for  the  interiors  of 
every  one  are  opened  and  formed  according  to  his  love 
and  life  ;  wherefore  the  more  interior  is  the  affection,  the 
more  conformable  it  is  to  heaven,  and  hence  the  more 
beautiful  is  the  face.  .  .  .  All  perfection  increases  toward 
the  interiors,  and  decreases  toward  the  exteriors ;  and 
as  perfection  increases  and  decreases,  so  likewise  does 
beauty.  I  have  seen  the  faces  of  angels  of  the  third 
heaven,  which  were  so  beautiful  that  no  painter,  with  all 
his  art,  could  ever  impart  to  colors  such  animation  as  to 
equal  a  thousandth  part  of  the  brightness  and  life  which 
appeared  in  their  faces." — H.  H.  n.  459. 

"  Beauty  derived  only  from  the  truth  of  faith,  is  like 
the  beauty  of  a  painted  or  sculptured  face ;  but  the 
beauty  derived  from  the  affection  of  truth  which  is  from 
good,  is  like  the  beauty  of  a  living  face  animated  by 
celestial  love  ;  for  such  as  is  the  quality  of  the  love,  or 
of  the  affection  beaming  from  the  form  of  the  face,  such 
is  the  beauty.  Hence  it  is  that  the  angels  appear  of  in- 
effable beauty.  From  their  faces  beams  forth  the  good 
of  love  by  the  truth  of  faith,  which  not  only  appears 


r/SA'SO.V.l/.  ArrEARANCE  OF  THE  ANGELS.  211 


before  the  sitjht,  but  is  also  perceived  by  the  spheres 
thence  derived.  The  reason  why  this  is  the  source  and 
origin  of  beauty  is,  that  the  universal  heaven  is  a  Grand 
Man,  and  corresponds  to  all  even  the  most  minute  things 
appertaining  to  man.  He,  therefore,  who  is  principled 
in  the  good  of  love  and  thence  in  the  truth  of  faith,  is  in 
the  form  of  heaven,  consequently  in  the  beauty  in  which 
heaven  is,  where  the  Divine  of  the  Lord  is  all  in  all. 
Hence  also  it  is,  that  those  who  are  in  hell,  since  they 
are  contrary  to  good  and  truth,  are  in  horrible  deformity, 
and  in  the  light  of  heaven  they  appear  not  as  men  but 
as  monsters." — A.  C.  n.  5199. 

"  The  understanding  of  man  is  nothing  else  but  the 
will  unfolded  and  formed,  so  that  its  quality  may 
appear  visibly.  Hence  it  is  evident  whence  beauty  is, 
viz.,  of  the  interior  man,  that  it  is  from  the  good  of  the 
will  by  the  truth  of  faith.  The  truth  of  faith  itself  pre- 
sents beauty  in  the  external  form,  but  the  good  of  the 
will  sets  it  in  and  forms  it.  Hence  it  is  that  the  angels 
of  heaven  are  of  ineffable  beauty,  for  they  are  as  it  were 
loves  and  charities  in  form  ;  wherefore  when  they  appear 
in  their  beauty,  they  affect  the  inmost  principles.  With 
them  the  good  of  love  from  the  Lord  shines  forth  through 
the  truth  of  faith,  and  as  it  penetrates  it  affects." — Ibid, 
n.  4985  ;  also  n.  3212. 

"  When  the  angels  present  themselves  visible,  all  their 
interior  affections  appear  clearly  from  the  face,  and  thence 
shine  forth,  so  that  the  face  is  their  external  form  and 
representative  image.  To  have  any  other  face  than  that 
of  their  respective  affections,  is  not  allowed  to  any  in 
heaven.  They  who  feign  any  other  face,  are  cast  out 
from  the  society.  Hence  it  is  manifest  that  the  face  cor- 
responds to  all  the  interiors  in  general,  both  to  the  affec- 
tions and  the  thoughts  thereof  or  to  those  things  which 
are  of  the  will  and  understanding  with  man.  Hence 
also  in  the  Word  by  face  and  faces  are  signified  the  af- 
fections."— Ibid.  n.  4796. 


212 


HE  A  YEN  RE  VEA  L  ED. 


"  Evil  spirits  may  also  be  known  from  their  faces,  for 
all  their  lusts  or  evil  affections  are  inscribed  on  their 
faces ;  and  it  may  likewise  be  known  from  their  faces 
with  what  hells  they  communicate  ;  for  there  are  very 
many  hells  all  distinct  according  to  the  genera  and  species 
of  the  lusts  of  evil.  In  general  their  faces,  when  seen  in 
the  light  of  heaven,  are  almost  without  life,  being  ghastly 
like  those  of  dead  bodies,  in  some  cases  black,  and  in 
some  monstrous  ;  for  they  are  the  forms  of  hatred,  cruelty, 
deceit  and  hypocrisy ;  but  in  their  own  light  among 
themselves,  they  appear  otherwise  from  fantasy." — A.  C. 
n.  4798. 

Many  more  passages  similar  to  these  might  be  cited  ; 
and  however  the  phraseology  or  form  of  expression  may 
vary,  their  substance  will  be  found  invariably  the  same. 

And  here,  as  on  other  subjects,  the  seer's  assertions 
address  themselves  to  our  rational  intuitions,  and  meet 
with  a  ready  response  from  every  enlightened  and  un- 
prejudiced mind.  For  every  one  sees  that,  if  the  char- 
acter of  the  angels  is  as  pure  and  exalted  as  he  tells  us 
it  is,  their  personal  appearance  cannot  be  other  than  he 
has  so  often  described  it.  If  their  interiors  are  purer, 
their  souls  more  beautiful,  than  those  of  men — if  they 
are  wiser,  nobler,  more  loving  and  unselfish,  then  we 
should  expect  them  to  be  more  beautiful  in  form  and 
aspect.  This  is  so  reasonable  that  a  child  sees  the  utter 
absurdity  of  any  doctrine  essentially  different.  For  a 
child  sees  that  it  is  impossible  for  such  exalted  human 
excellence  as  that  to  which  the  angels  have  attained,  to 
exist  under  hideous  and  repulsive  forms ;  and  it  has  an 
equally  clear  and  instinctive  perception  that  these  latter 
are  the  apjDropriate  forms  of  wicked  spirits  or  demons. 


PERSOXAL  APPEARANCE  OF  THE  ANGELS. 


213 


All  men  arc  physiognomists  to  some  extent,  even  with- 
out knowing  it ;  for  every  one  forms  some  idea  of  the 
character  of  others  from  the  features  and  expression  of 
their  faces.  And  the  idea  they  form  would  seldom  fail 
of  being  correct,  were  it  not  that  people  often  act  the 
hypocrite,  and  make  their  faces  lie  as  they  do  their  lips 
and  actions. 

And  what  is  thought  to  constitute  the  most  exalted 
human  beauty  here  on  earth  ?  What  sort  of  a  face  do 
people  of  high  culture  and  a  truly  Christian  spirit  com- 
monly regard  as  most  beautiful  ?  Is  it  not  that  combi- 
nation of  features  and  that  expression  which  reveals  the 
most  and  the  highest  order  of  mind? — that  which  ex- 
presses the  noblest  qualities  of  heart  in  union  the  most 
exalted  powers  of  intellect? — that  which  seems  in  the 
highest  degree  instinct  with  the  divine  attributes  of  wis- 
dom and  love  ?  To  a  cultivated  mind  that  face,  and  that 
only,  is  beautiful,  which  reveals  a  beautiful  soul ;  and  it  is 
beautiful  just  in  the  degree  that  it  expresses  the  thoughts, 
feelings,  aspirations  and  hopes  of  such  a  soul.  A  per- 
son's face  speaks  as  plainly  as  his  lips,  and  often  more 
truthfully.  For  many  a  time  does  the  face  reveal  thoughts 
and  feelings  which  the  lips  vainly  strive  to  conceal.  The 
looks  often  contradict  the  words.  And  if  the  graces  of 
heaven — humility,  meekness,  resignation,  courage,  be- 
nevolence, gratitude,  hope,  love,  trust — really  dwell  in 
the  heart,  they  will  to  some  extent  reveal  themselves  in 
the  countenance  even  in  this  world.  And  those  who 
have  any  just  appreciation  of  the  spirit  of  true  religion, 
will  call  that  countenance  most  beautiful  which  expresses 
the  largest  measure  of  these  heavenly  graces. 


214 


HEAVEN  /REVEALED. 


It  is  the  quality  of  the  spiritual  and  invisible  part,  then 
• — the  peculiar  characteristics  of  mind  and  heart  which 
the  face  discloses — that  makes  all  the  difference  among 
people  on  earth  in  respect  to  beauty.  And  among  culti- 
vated Christian  people  that  face  will  always  be  thought 
most  beautiful,  which  expresses  most  of  the  higher  and 
nobler  qualities  of  humanity.  There  is  no  beauty  in  the 
human  countenance  apart  from  the  mental  beauty — the 
lofty  thoughts,  the  sweet  affections,  the  tender  sympathies, 
the  noble  purpose  which  it  reveals.  This  is  confessed 
by  all  the  great  masters  in  literature.  Thus  Milton  says 
of  Adam  and  Eve  while  in  their  primitive  innocence: 

"  For  in  their  looks  divine 

The  iniai^e  of  their  glorious  Maker  shone, 
Truth,  wisdom,  sanctitude,  severe  and  pure." 

And  Spenser,  with  the  insight  of  a  true  poet,  and  clearly 
recognizing  the  influence  of  the  soul  upon  the  body  even 
to  the  extent  disclosed  in  Swedenborg's  pneumatology, 
sings : 

"  Every  spirit,  as  it  is  most  pure. 

And  hath  in  it  the  more  of  heavenly  light. 
So  it  the  fairer  body  doth  procure 
To  habit  in  : 

For  of  the  soul  the  body  form  doth  take, 
For  soul  is  form  and  doth  the  body  make." 

And  in  a  like  strain  sing  Addison  and  Young,  Shak- 
speare  and  Goethe,  Byron  and  Coleridge,  and  all  the 
great  masters  in  this  art. 

Every  one  knows,  too,  that  a  good  artist  is  able  to  ex- 
press all  the  passions  and  emotions  of  the  heart  in  the 
faces  of  the  figures  he  paints  or  carves:  and  can  express 
them  with  such  precision  that  people  of  some  discern- 


PERSOXAL  APPEARANCE  OF  THE  ANGELS.  215 


ment  will  read  them  the  moment  they  look  at  the  picture 
or  statue.  Ask  any  distinguished  sculptor  to  embody  in 
a  bust  certain  well-defined  mental  or  moral  qualities,  and 
he  will  do  it  with  such  fidelity  that  every  close  observer 
of  human  nature  will  read  in  that  bust  the  very  qualities 
you  described,  almost  as  easily  as  if  they  were  printed 
in  a  book.  This  were  impossible  but  for  the  correspond- 
ence existing  between  the  face  and  the  passions  and  emo- 
tions of  the  heart ; — a  correspondence  so  exact  and  per- 
fect, too,  that  where  no  willful  deception  is  practiced,  the 
former  may  be  taken  as  the  representative  image  of  the 
latter. 

Then  look  at  the  faces  of  little  children — those  young 
immortals  so  guileless  and  innocent,  so  late  from  their 
Maker's  hand,  with  the  impress  of  heaven  so  fresh  upon 
them — and  how  legibly  can  you  see  recorded  there  the 
feelings  of  their  hearts  !  How  unmistakably  do  their 
laughing  faces  tell  of  the  exuberant  life,  the  overflowing 
joy  and  gladness  within  their  little  bosoms  !  And  when 
they  experience  disappointment,  sorrow,  vexation  or 
shame,  how  faithfully  are  these  emotions  imprinted  on 
their  faces,  and  how  quickly,  too  !  And  the  same  is  true 
of  adults  in  the  degree  that  they  have  retained  the  inno- 
cence and  simplicity  of  childhood,  or  become  as  little 
children  by  regeneration.  When  joy  and  gladness  fill 
their  hearts,  their  faces  are  sure  to  reveal  the  fact.  The 
sunshine  within  streams  out  from  their  eyes,  and  sheds 
its  radiance  over  the  whole  countenance.  Again,  when 
sorrow  comes,  when  cares  oppress  and  fears  disturb  and 
gloomy  thoughts  becloud  the  soul,  their  faces  proclaim 
this  inward  change  as  clearly  as  the  moving  shadow  on 


2l6 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


the  landscape  proclaims  the  floating  cloud  between  it 
and  the  sun.  This,  indeed,  is  true  of  every  one  to  some 
extent.  It  is  only  with  those  who  have  lost  the  sim- 
plicity of  childhood,  and  learned  to  practice  the  arts  of 
deception,  that  the  face  ceases  to  be  a  true  index  of  the 
mind ; — fails  to  reveal  by  its  changes  the  sunshine  or 
gloom,  the  joy  or  sorrow,  the  peace  or  unrest  that  exists 
within. 

And  not  only  does  the  face  reveal  the  transitory  feel- 
ings, the  changes  of  mental  state,  as  from  joy  to  sorrow, 
but  it  registers  with  fidelity  those  .states  which  have  be- 
come fixed  and  abiding.  Let  a  person  harbor  for  any 
considerable  time  melancholy  thoughts  and  dark  fore- 
bodings ;  let  him  indulge  in  poignant  grief,  in  anxious 
fears  or  bitter  repinings ;  let  him  encourage  by  indul- 
gence the  growth  of  an  inordinate  love  of  the  world,  a 
mean  and  miserly  spirit,  or  a  sour  and  misanthropic 
temper,  and  how  surely  will  this  confirmed  habit  of  his 
soul  imprint  itself  upon  his  countenance!  Or  let  him, 
on  the  other  hand,  exercise  the  spirit  of  self-denial,  let 
him  repose  calmly  and  trustingly  on  the  Divine  Provi- 
dence, let  him  cultivate  a  cheerful  and  resigned  disposi- 
tion, cherish  noble  and  unselfish  aims,  exercise  himself 
habitually  in  kind  and  philanthropic  deeds,  and  thus  open 
his  soul  more  and  more  to  the  influx  of  the  Lord's  un- 
selfish love;  and  let  this  be  continued  for  a  series  of 
years,  and  the  heavenly  quality  of  his  inner  man  will  be 
legibly  inscribed  upon  his  countenance.  You  will  see 
the  angel  shining  through.  The  light  of  heaven  will 
sparkle  in  his  eye,  and  the  warmth  of  heaven  will  tinge 
his  cheek  with  a  lustre  all  its  own ;  and  this,  too,  in 


PERSONAL  APPEARANCE  OF  THE  AjXGELS. 


217 


spite  of  the  wrinkles  that  usually  accompany  declining 
years. 

There  is,  then,  abundant  evidence  right  around  us  of 
the  truth  of  what  Swedenborg  says  as  to  the  personal 
appearance  of  people  in  the  other  world,  and  of  the  great 
law  that  determines  it.  For  we  all  know  that  there  is  a 
strong  and  continual  tendency  in  whatever  passion  or 
principle  is  allowed  to  govern  a  man,  to  mould  the  coun- 
tenance into  a  form  correspondent  with  itself.  We  know 
that  heavenly  love  deep-seated  in  the  heart,  has  ever  a 
tendency  to  light  up  the  countenance  with  a  heavenly 
radiance.  And  we  know,  too,  that  the  tendency  of  all 
infernal  principles  is  equally  strong  in  this  respect.  All 
evil  feelings  long  indulged,  all  sad  and  sickening  thoughts, 
all  dark  and  gloomy  views  of  God,  religion  and  human 
life,  are  perpetually  operating,  so  long  as  they  are  enter- 
tained, to  shape  the  outward  corporeal  part  into  complete 
correspondence  with  themselves  ; — perpetually  working 
to  divest  the  visage  of  its  properly  human  expression, 
and  imprint  thereon  the  deformity  of  hell.  If  it  is  true 
that  "  a  man's  wisdom  maketh  his  face  to  shine,"  it  is 
equally  true  that  a  wicked  heart  will  in  time  mould  the 
countenance  into  an  exact  image  of  its  wickedness. 

It  is  certain,  then — nothing,  indeed,  can  be  more  so — 
that  the  human  countenance  was  intended  by  the  Creator 
to  be  the  perfect  image  of  the  heart's  affections.  The 
face  was  plainly  meant  to  be  the  mirror  of  the  soul. 
And  the  nearer  men  approach  to  the  innocence  and  sim- 
plicity of  childhood,  and  the  less  disguises  they  wear, 
the  less  occasion  do  they  have  for  concealment,  and  the 
more  truly  do  their  faces  as  well  as  their  words  express 
'9 


2l8 


HE  A  J  'EN  RE  J  'EALED. 


the  thoughts  and  feelings  of  their  hearts.  How,  then, 
should  we  expect  it  would  be  in  heaven  where  innocence, 
simplicity,  purity  and  love  reign  triumphant  ? — where  all 
are  willing  to  be  seen  in  the  light,  and  no  one  desires  to 
express  by  his  looks  a  single  emotion  that  he  does  not 
feel  ?  Should  not  the  faces  of  the  angels  express  with 
mathematical  exactness  the  unselfish  love  that  dwells 
within  their  bosoms?  And  if  so,  how  surpassingly 
beautiful  must  they  be  !  How  easy  to  believe,  therefore, 
what  Swedenborg  so  often  declares,  that  their  beauty  is 
beyond  the  power  of  art  to  picture  or  of  human  language 
to  describe  !  Otherwise  there  would  not  be  a  perfect  cor- 
respondence between  their  internals  and  externals,  and 
the  face  in  heaven  would  not  be  the  mirror  of  the  soul. 

The  face,  then,  being  intended  by  the  Creator  to  faith- 
fully express  the  feelings  and  dispositions  of  the  heart, 
corresponds  to  the  interiors  of  the  mind,  or  to  the  ruling 
love.  This  love,  therefore,  is  what  is  meant  by  the  face 
in  Sacred  Scripture  when  spiritually  interpreted.  Ac- 
cordingly the  Psalmist  prays :  "  God  be  merciful  to  us 
and  bless  us,  and  cause  his  face  to  shine  upon  us." 
(LXVII.  I  :  LXXX.  3.)  The  inmost  and  very  esse  of 
the  Lord,  is  pure,  unselfish  love.  And  when  there  is  an 
influx  of  this  love  into  our  hearts,  and  we  feel  it  as  our 
own,  then  the  Lord's  face  shines  upon  us,  and  we  are 
saved — delivered  from  the  love  of  self  which  is  altogether 
infernal.  And  so  the  Psalmist  again  prays:  "O  God, 
cause  thy  face  to  shine,  and  we  shall  be  saved."  Deliv- 
erance from  the  dominion  of  self-love,  and  reception  of 
the  Lord's  own  love  instead,  is  the  only  true  salvation. 
Again,  in  Isaiah :  "  Your  iniquities  have  separated  be- 


PERSONAL  APPEARAXCE  OF  THE  ANGELS.  2I9 


tween  you  and  your  God,  and  your  sins  have  hid  his  face 
from  you."  Self-love  is  the  very  opposite  of  the  Lord's; 
and  they  who  are  ruled  by  it,  are  in  a  sinful  state,  and 
have  no  conception  of  the  Lord's  love.  His  face  is  there- 
fore hid  from  them.  Again  the  Psalmist  says  :  "  Thy 
face,  Lord,  will  I  seek."  We  seek  the  Lord's  face,  when, 
through  obedience  to  the  laws  of  the  heavenly  life  which 
He  has  revealed,  we  open  our  hearts  to  the  reception  of 
his  own  life,  that  is,  his  unselfish  love.  Again  :  "  Blessed 
is  the  people  that  know  the  joyful  sound  ;  they  shall  walk, 
O  Lord,  in  the  light  of  thy  countenance."  The  light  of 
the  Lord's  countenance  is  the  light  of  truth  proceeding 
from  his  divine  love,  as  light  proceeds  from  and  is  the 
visible  manifestation  of  heat  in  the  natural  world. 

And  hundreds  of  similar  illustrations  from  Scripture 
might  be  added;  all  of  which  go  to  show  the  intimate 
connection  of  the  spiritual  sense  of  the  Word,  with  the 
facts,  phenomena  and  laws  of  the  spiritual  world ;  and 
how  a  knowledge  of  these  latter  may  help  us  in  the  right 
understanding  and  interpretation  of  the  former. 

What,  now,  is  the  practical  lesson  to  be  drawn  from 
the  subject  as  here  presented  ? 

It  may  be  seen  from  what  has  been  said,  that  beauty 
is  the  mark  which  God  has  set  on  goodness.  The  ex- 
ternal beauty  of  the  angels  is  but  the  type,  or  correspon- 
dential  form,  of  their  beautiful  souls.  Their  pure  and 
unselfish  love  exerts  a  potent  influence  over  their  bodily 
organism,  moulding  every  feature  into  a  form  of  corre- 
sponding grace  and  loveliness.  Yes :  it  is  love — love 
from  the  Lord,  and  therefore  kindred  to  his  own — that 
makes  their  faces  so  lovely.    And  this  angelic  beauty 


220 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


wc  are  all  made  capable  of  attaining  in  some  measure. 
But  the  only  way  of  attaining  it,  is  by  strict  and  religious 
obedience  to  the  revealed  laws  of  the  angelic  life, — pre- 
cisely as  bodily  health  and  vigor  are  attained  and  pre- 
served by  strict  conformity  to  the  laws  of  health.  En- 
couraging and  strengthening  by  exercise  the  growth  of 
angelic  dispositions,  is  the  sure  way  of  ultimately  attain- 
ing to  angelic  beauty.  Our  bodies  in  the  Hereafter  will 
be  just  what  we,  by  our  volitions  and  conduct  here,  choose 
to  make  them — moulded  into  forms  exactly  correspond- 
ent to  the  dispositions  we  cherish  and  the  feelings  we 
habitually  indulge — perfect  images  of  our  ruling  loves: 
beautiful  and  symmetrical  if  we  are  careful  to  strengthen 
and  confirm  the  principles  that  beautify  the  soul,  but  ugly 
and  deformed  if  wc  encourage  the  growth  of  the  opposite 
principles. 

To  conclude.  It  is  a  solemn  and  impressive  fact,  that 
within  each  of  our  material  frames  is  a  spiritual  and  im- 
nioi  tal  body,  receiving  its  daily  and  hourly  sustenance 
from  the  spiritual  world  ;  a  bi.dy  which  lives  and  grows 
upon  the  food  of  angels,  or  the  food  of  devils.  And 
every  year — yea,  every  day — this  immortal  body  is  ap- 
proximating the  exquisite  symmetry  and  grace  ofheaven, 
or  assuming  more  and  more  the  hideous  deformity  of 
hell :  and  this,  according  to  the  prevailing  tenor  of  our 
daily  lives, — according  to  the  dispositions  we  habitually 
cherish,  and  the  motives  from  which  we  uniformly  act. 
For  here,  in  the  flesh,  our  immortal  part  is  daily  and 
hourly  taking  on  its  enduring  shape.  Here  it  is  con- 
tinually developing — every  feature  and  lineament — in 
exact  correspondence  with  the  nature  of  the  principles 


REJUVENESCENCE  IN  HEAVEN. 


221 


we  allow  to  govern  us ;  that  is,  with  the  love  that  reigns 
and  rules  in  our  hearts,  the  central  fire  and  moulding 
force  of  our  immortal  being. 


XVIII. 

REJUVENESCENCE  AND  GROWTH  IN  HEAVEN. 


HOEVER  thinks  of  existence  in  heaven  as  a 


V  V  reality,  can  hardly  help  asking.  Do  people  grow 
old  there  as  they  do  here  on  earth  ?  And  is  their  age 
written  on  their  faces,  as  it  is  on  the  faces  of  men  ?  And 
do  those  who  leave  this  world  far  advanced  in  years,  and 
who  enter  the  society  of  the  blessed,  forever  retain  the 
withered  form  and  furrowed  cheeks  which  they  had  at 
the  time  they  kft  this  world  ?  There  is  really  but  one 
question  involved  in  these  interrogatories,  and  that  is 
one  concerning  the  age  or  apparent  age  of  the  denizens 
of  heaven.  Do  they  appear  young  or  old  ?  What  is 
Swedenborg's  answer  to  this  question  ? 

Before  adducing  his  testimony,  we  will  consider  how 
the  question  ought  to  be  answered.  What  is  the  verdict 
of  reason  on  the  subject,  and  what  the  inevitable  con- 
clusion to  be  drawn  from  the  teaching  of  the  last  chap- 
ter ? 

If  what  has  been  said  concerning  the  beaut}'  of  the 
angels  is  to  be  accepted  as  true,  it  follows  that  they  do 
not  grow  old  ;  or,  at  least,  that  age  does  not  plow  such 
furrows  in  their  faces  as  it  does  in  the  faces  of  men.  For 
we  all  recognize  something  comparatively  unbeautiful  in 


19* 


222 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


the  wasted  check,  the  lustreless  eye,  and  the  furrowed 
brow  of  old  age.  The  faces  and  forms  of  men  and 
women  at  ninety — however  pure  and  innocent  the  lives 
they  have  led — would  rarely  be  thought  beautiful.  They 
seldom — never,  indeed — at  that  age  realize  our  highest 
conception  of  the  human  form.  What,  then,  miglit  we 
expect  would  be  the  appearance  of  those  who  have  been 
in  heaven  thousands  of  years,  if  Time  laid  his  palsying 
hand  on  the  bodies  of  angels  as  it  docs  on  those  of  men  ? 
Why,  they  would  be  divested  of  every  vestige  of  human 
comeliness.  Their  features  and  forms  would  hardly  be 
recognized  as  human,  so  shriveled  and  wasted  would 
they  be.  And  if  those  who  die  at  an  advanced  age  and 
go  to  heaven,  are  forever  to  bear  about  them  the  same 
decrepid  form  and  furrowed  cheeks  which  marked  their 
declining  years  on  earth,  then  would  it,  indeed,  be  a 
calamity  to  live  "  to  a  good  old  age  "  on -earth.  Unless 
the  aged  saint  is  to  lose  in  heaven  his  wrinkles  and  his 
decrepitude,  and  return  to  the  vigor  and  freshness  of  his 
earlier  years,  who  would  wish  to  remain  on  earth  beyond 
the  age  of  twenty  ? 

What  has  been  said,  therefore,  of  the  beauty  of  the 
angels,  if  true,  is  conclusive  evidence  that  they  do  not 
apparently  grow  old  in  heaven  ;  and  that  the  good  who 
die  at  an  advanced  age,  must  there  rejuvenate — must 
return  to  the  beauty  and  buoyancy  of  their  "  golden 
prime." 

Besides,  in  this  world  all  the  usual  signs  of  old  age, 
are  so  many  signs  of  a  decaying  process — signs  that 
corporeal  dissolution  has  already  commenced ;  for  what 
is  decay  but  a  gradual  dying?    But  there  is  no  death  in 


REJUVENESCEXCE  IN  HEAVEN: 


223 


heaven,  consequently  no  decay.  Therefore  there  can  be 
no  deterioration  there  of  any  of  the  powers  of  body  or 
of  mind ; — no  blunting  of  the  senses,  no  wasting  of  tlie 
form,  none  of  the  visible  signs  which  in  this  world  pro- 
claim the  coming  on  of  decrepid  old  age. 

Moreover,  time  cannot  properly  be  predicated  of  that 
which  is  spiritual;  consequently  it  cannot  be  predicated 
of  the  spiritual  world,  or  of  spiritual  beings.  We  can- 
not say,  nor  even  think,  that  God  is  old  ;  nor  that  He 
is  older  now  than  He  was  ten  thousand  years  ago,  or 
younger  than  He  will  be  ten  thousand  years  hence.  We 
cannot  predicate  age  of  love  or  wisdom  or  any  of  the 
Divine  attributes.  Nor  can  age  be  predicated  of  absolute 
Life.  And  God  is  the  only  absolute  Life,  and  the  infi- 
nite Fountain  of  life  to  angels  and  men.  And  Life  itself 
is  forever  young  and  vigorous,  forever  fresh  and  new. 
And  since  the  angels  are  continually  becoming  more  and 
more  perfect — continually  being  conjoined  more  closely 
with  the  Lord — continually  receiving  fresh  increments 
of  life  from  the  One  only  Fountain  of  life,  therefore  they 
must  be  always  advancing  towards  a  state  of  ever-in- 
creasing vigor,  bloom  and  beauty. 

Such  is  the  undeniable  testimony  of  reason  on  this 
subject.  Such  is  the  conclusion  logically  deduced  from 
known  and  admitted  truths,  and  from  premises  already 
established.  And  this  is  precisely  what  Swedenborg  has 
reported  from  personal  observation,  after  long  and  open 
intercourse  with  the  heaven  of  angels.  Let  the  follow- 
ing suffice  for  illustration : 

"  Such  as  are  principled  in  mutual  love,  are  continually 
advancing  in  heaven  to  the  spring-time  of  their  youth ; 


224 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


and  the  more  thousands  of  years  they  pass,  they  attain 
to  a  more  joyous  and  delightful  spring  ;  and  so  continue 
on  to  eternity,  with  fresh  increments  of  blessedness  ac- 
cording to  their  respective  proficiencies  and  gradations 
of  mutual  love,  charity  and  faith.  Those  of  the  female 
sex  who  had  departed  this  life  broken  with  the  infirmities 
of  old  age,  having  lived  in  faith  towards  the  Lord,  in 
charity  towards  their  neighbor,  and  in  conjugial  love 
with  their  husbands,  aRer  a  succession  of  ages  appear  to 
advance  towards  the  bloom  of  youth,  with  a  beauty  sur- 
passing all  description  ;  for  goodness  and  charity  form 
their  own  image  in  such  persons,  and  express  their  de- 
lights and  beauties  in  every  feature  of  their  faces,  inso- 
much that  they  become  real  forms  of  charity.  Certain 
spirits  that  beheld  them  were  astonished  at  the  sight. 
Such  is  the  form  of  charity,  which  in  heaven  is  repre- 
sented to  the  life  ;  for  it  is  charity  that  portrays  it,  and 
is  portrayed  in  it,  and  that  in  a  manner  so  expressive, 
that  the  whole  angel,  more  particularly  as  to  the  face, 
appears  as  charity  itself  in  a  personal  form  of  exquisite 
beauty  affecting  the  soul  of  the  spectator  with  something 
of  the  same  grace  ;  by  the  beauty  of  that  form,  the  truths 
of  faith  are  exhibited  in  an  image,  and  are  also  thereby 
rendered  perceptible.  Those  who  have  lived  in  faith 
toward  the  Lord,  that  is,  in  a  faith  grounded  in  charity, 
become  such  forms  or  such  beauties  in  another  life.  All 
the  angels  are  such  forms  with  an  infinite  variety ;  and 
of  these  heaven  is  composed." — A.  C.  n.  553. 

Every  candid  mind  must  admit  that  this  is  altogether 
reasonable.  And  not  only  so,  but  any  different  view 
would  at  once  appear  unreasonable.  And  the  rejuve- 
nating process  in  the  other  world,  though  it  may  proceed 
more  rapidly  than  the  aging  process  in  this,  proceeds 
according  to  a  law  no  less  fixed  or  intelligible.  The 
Divine  wisdom  and  beneficence  are  alike  reflected  in  both 


REJUVENESCENCE  IN  HEAVEN.  22$ 


processes,  and  the  reasonableness  of  the  former  is  as 
clearly  discernible  as  that  of  the  latter.  The  spiritual 
organism  being  perfectly  plastic  to  the  influent  life,  as 
that  life  becomes  sweeter  and  richer,  and  its  influx  more 
copious,  the  inevitable  result  must  be  a  growing  per- 
fection of  the  human  form,  and  a  steady  increase  of  hu- 
man beauty. 

Another  question  closely  allied  to  the  one  we  have 
just  considered,  is :  Do  those  who  die  in  infancy  or 
childhood  continue  to  grow  in  the  other  world,  as  they 
would  have  done  had  they  remained  longer  in  this  ?  Or 
do  they  continue  forever  the  same  in  stature  as  when 
they  departed  this  life  ?  Does  Swedenborg  answer  this 
question  ?    If  so,  how  ? 

How  would  enlightened  reason  answer  it  ?  we  again 
ask.  Is  it  reasonable  to  suppose  that  an  infant  dying 
before  it  is  able  to  walk,  will  remain  to  all  eternity  of 
the  same  infantile  form,  and  be  forever  carried  in  some 
sweet  mother's  arms  and  dandled  on  some  maternal  knee? 
Is  it  probable — nay,  is  it  conceivable  that  the  all-wise 
and  loving  Father  would  permit  an  immortal  soul  to  be 
thus  prematurely  arrested  in  its  growth,  and  by  an  inci- 
dent over  which  that  soul  had  no  control,  and  was  there- 
fore powerless  to  prevent?  For  we  cannot  conceive  of 
the  spirit  of  a  little  child  developing  into  the  grand,  ca- 
pacious, wise  and  loving  soul  of  a  full-grown  angel,  with- 
out a  corresponding  change  or  development  of  that 
spiritual  organism  which  constitutes  its  body  in  the  spir- 
itual realm.  The  idea  is  repugnant  to  all  our  conceptions 
as  well  as  our  knowledge  of  the  laws  of  divine  order. 
As  easily  can  we  conceive  of  the  luscious  qualities  of 
P 


226 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


the  full-grown  and  ripened  peach  or  orange  existing  in 
the  germ  of  that  fruit  soon  as  the  flower  has  fallen  ;  or 
of  these  qualities  becoming  fully  developed  there,  with- 
out a  corresponding  growth  and  development  of  the  germ 
itself  Far  more  reasonable  is  it  to  believe  that  the  Lord 
has  made  provision  for  the  growth  of  the  spiritual  body 
after  the  material  has  been  sloughed  off,  that  the  soul 
may  not  be  arrested  in  its  development  by  the  mere  inci- 
dent of  bodily  death.  The  body  grows  on  earth  to  the 
full  stature  of  manhood  by  the  steady  accretion  of  ma- 
terial substance ;  what  should  hinder  its  growth  in  heaven 
to  the  full  stature  of  angelhood  by  a  similar  accretion 
of  spiritual  substance  ?  The  spiritual  body  while  yet  in 
the  flesh,  grows  with  the  material, — indeed  it  is  the 
growth  of  the  spiritual  which  causes  that  of  the  material ; 
what  then  is  to  hinder  its  continued  growth  after  it  leaves 
the  flesh?  It  is  not  natural  but  spiritual  substance  that 
feeds  the  soul  while  in  the  natural  body ;  and  will  it  not 
have  the  same  food,  and  the  same  means  of  growth  there- 
fore, after  this  body  dies? 

It  is  clear  enough,  then,  what  the  verdict  of  reason  is 
on  this  subject.  Now  listen  to  the  testimony  of  him 
whose  spiritual  eyes  and  ears  were  opened,  and  who  was 
able,  therefore,  to  testify  "  from  things  seen  and  heard." 

"  Many  persons  may  imagine  that  infants  remain  such 
in  heaven,  and  exist  as  infants  among  the  angels.  They 
who  do  not  know  what  constitutes  an  angel,  may  have 
confirmed  themselves  in  this  opinion  from  the  images 
sometimes  seen  in  churches  where  angels  are  exhibited 
as  infants.  But  the  case  is  altogether  otherwise.  Intel- 
ligence and  wisdom  constitute  an  angel  ;  and  so  long  as 
infants  have  not  intelligence  and  wisdom,  they  are  not 


REJUVENESCENCE  IN  HEAVEN.  22/ 


angels,  although  they  are  with  angels.  But  when  they 
become  intelligent  and  wise,  then  for  the  first  time  they 
become  angels.  Yea, — a  thing  that  I  have  wondered  at, 
— they  then  no  longer  appear  as  infants,  but  as  adults ; 
for  they  are  then  no  longer  of  an  infantile  genius,  but 
of  a  more  mature  angelic  genius.  Intelligence  and  wis- 
dom produce  this  effect.  As  infants  are  perfected  in  in- 
telligence and  wisdom,  they  appear  more  mature,  thus 
as  youths  and  young  men,  because  intelligence  and  wis- 
dom are  real  spiritual  nourishment.  For  this  reason  the 
things  which  nourish  their  minds  nourish  their  bodies 
also, — and  this  from  correspondence ;  for  the  form  of 
the  body  is  but  the  external  form  of  the  interiors. 

"  It  is  to  be  observed  that  infants  in  heaven  do  not  ad- 
vance in  age  beyond  the  period  of  early  manhood  ;  and 
there  they  stop  forever  [/.  c.  so  far  as  apparent  progress 
in  age  is  concerned].  That  I  might  be  assured  of  this, 
it  was  granted  me  to  converse  with  some  who  were  edu- 
cated as  infants  in  heaven,  and  who  had  grown  up  there; 
with  some  also  when  they  were  infants,  and  afterwards 
with  the  same  when  they  had  become  young  men ;  and 
I  heard  from  them  the  progress  of  their  life  from  one  age 
to  another." — H.  H.  n.  340. 

And  so  we  find  that,  on  this  as  on  other  subjects,  Swe- 
denborg's  revealings  "from  things  heard  and  seen"  are 
in  perfect  agreement  with  the  intuitions  of  the  highest 
reason,  and  with  all  that  is  known  of  the  wisdom  and 
dealings  of  Providence  and  of  the  laws  of  divine  order. 
It  is  impossible  to  conceive  of  any  different  view  of  the 
subject,  which  will  so  completely  satisfy  the  demands  of 
sober  reason  and  an  enlightened  understanding. 

In  view  of  such  sublime  revealings,  what  a  precious 
boon  is  heaven  ! — yet  a  boon  which  all  are  made  capable 
of  attaining,  and  which  it  is  the  Lord's  ceaseless  desire 


228 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


and  effort  to  help  us  to  attain.  There  flows  forever  the 
stream  of  the  water  of  life,  and  forever  increases  in  crystal 
clearness.  There  the  fountains  of  wisdom  are  ever  fresh, 
and  the  flame  of  love  burns  with  ever-increasing  fervor. 
There  beauty  never  fades,  but  ever  grows  more  fresh  and 
fair.  There  none  grow  old,  but  all  rejuvenate  ; — all  who 
have  passed  on  earth  their  manhood's  prime,  are  forever 
advancing  towards  younger,  yet  still  riper  life.  Old  age 
puts  off  its  wrinkles  there,  and  returns  to  the  vigor  and 
bloom  of  early  manhood.  There  joys  never  decay,  and 
the  warm  current  of  bounding  life  gushes  forth  with 
perennial  freshness.  And  the  simple  yet  all-sufficient 
reason  is,  that  the  angels  are  forever  becoming  more  and 
more  receptive  of  the  Divine  Life — forever  drawing  nearer 
and  nearer,  or  becoming  more  and  more  like,  Him  who 
is  the  one  eternal  Source  of  all  wisdom,  beauty,  life  and 
joy. 


XIX. 

HOUSES  AND  HOMES  IN  HEAVEN. 
NE  of  the  definitions  which  a  distinguished  lexi- 


cographer  has  given  of  heaven,  is,  "  the  home  of 
the  blessed."  And  all  good  people,  when  they  think 
of  heaven,  think  of  it  as  a  Home, — their  eternal  home. 
When  they  look  forward  to  the  time  of  their  decease, 
they  think  and  speak  of  it  as  the  time  when  they  hope 
to  be  taken  home.  And  when  a  righteous  man  closes 
his  earthly  pilgrimage,  his  neighbors  say :  "  The  good 


HOUSES  AND  HOMES  IN  HEAVEN.  22g 


man  has  gone  home."  And  they  mean  by  this  no  more 
nor  less  than  that  he  has  gone  to  heaven. 

Indeed,  there  is  heavenly  meaning  and  heavenly  music 
in  this  monosyllable, — Home.  There  is  meaning  in  it 
which  the  universal  human  mind  perceives,  and  music 
which  the  universal  human  heart  feels.  Home  is  the 
hallowed  spot  to  which  our  fondest  affections  cling;  the 
centre  of  our  strongest  attachments,  our  sweetest  re- 
membrances, our  brightest  hopes,  our  purest  joys.  Every- 
thing dear  to  the  heart  of  a  good  man,  everything  most 
serene  and  peaceful  in  life,  everything  pleasant  or  even 
tolerable  in  death,  clusters  around  this  word.  The  sol- 
dier in  the  camp,  the  sailor  on  the  seas,  the  traveler  in 
foreign  lands, — how  does  his  eye  kindle  and  his  pulse 
quicken  at  the  bare  mention  of  this  word !  As  sings 
the  poet : 

"Who  that  in  distant  lands  has  chanced  to  roam, 
Ne'er  thrilled  with  pleasure  at  the  name  of  home  ?  " 

"Very  often,"  says  Dr.  Sears,  "when  the  eyes  are 
closing  in  death,  and  this  world  is  shutting  off  the  light 
from  the  departing  soul,  the  last  wish  which  is  made 
audible,  is,  '  to  go  home.'  The  words  break  out  some- 
times through  the  cloud  of  delirium  ;  but  it  is  the  soul's 
deepest  and  most  central  want,  groping  after  its  object, 
haply  soon  to  find  it  as  the  clogs  of  earth  clear  away, 
and  she  springs  up  on  the  line  of  swift  affection,  as  the 
bee  with  unerring  precision  shoots  through  the  dusk 
of  evening  to  her  cell." — Forcglcams  of  Immortality,  p. 
128. 

Yes  :  Among  all  the  deep  wants  of  our  nature,  among 
the  strong  yearnings  of  every  good  man's  heart,  none 
are  deeper  or  stronger  than  the  want  of,  and  the  yearn- 
20 


230 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


ing  for,  a  peaceful  and  happy  home.  To  say  of  any  man 
that  he  is  homeless,  is  to  picture  him  as  forlorn  and  des- 
olate, an  exile  and  a  wanderer,  not  yet  having  reached 
the  goal  of  his  earthly  hopes. 

Now,  God  has  implanted  no  deep  want  in  the  human 
breast  without  providing  for  its  gratification.  As  a  wise 
and  beneficent  Being,  he  miist  provide  for  the  ultimate 
satisfaction  of  every  desire  which  his  own  boundless 
love  has  placed  within  us.  And  this  universal  desire  for 
a  home,  is  one  which  belongs  to  the  soul's  nature.  It 
is  rooted  in  our  spiritual  constitution, — so  deeply  rooted, 
too,  that  we  may  be  sure  it  will  not  perish  with  the  death 
of  the  body.  And  when  we  consider  that  this  desire 
increases  rather  than  diminishes  in  strength  as  we  ad- 
vance in  the  regenerate  life,  or  approximate  the  heavenly 
state,  how  can  we  resist  the  conclusion  that  it  will  exist 
in  heaven  also,  and  be  even  stronger  there  than  here  ? 

And  if  this  universal  desire  for  a  home  goes  with  us 
into  the  other  world  (as  it  must,  if  it  belongs  to  our 
spiritual  constitution),  we  may  be  sure  that  the  Lord,  in 
the  plenitude  of  his  love  and  wisdom,  will  not  fail  to 
provide  for  its  gratification  in  heaven.  For  the  angels 
would  be  unhappy,  and  heaven  would  be  no  heaven  to 
them,  if,  endowed  with  an  intense  longing  for  a  home, 
the  means  and  opportunity  of  satisfying  this  thirst  were 
denied  them. 

The  conclusion,  therefore,  is  forced  upon  us,  that  there 
are  and  must  be  homes  in  heaven,  as  there  are  in  all  the 
best  and  happiest  portions  of  earth. 

But  the  moment  we  think  of  the  angels  as  having 
homes,  we  think  of  them  as  dwelling  in  houses, — so  inti- 


JIOUSES  AND  HOMES  IN  HEAVEN.  23 1 


mately  is  the  idea  of  home  associated  in  our  minds  with 
some  kind  of  habitation.  We  cannot  even  think  of  hu- 
man homes  without  human  habitations  of  some  sort ; 
and  they  are  no  more  possible  in  heaven  than  on  earth. 

True,  the  first  use  of  houses  here,  is  defense  against 
the  storms  and  shelter  from  the  cold  and  heat.  But 
this,  though  it  be  their  primary,  is  by  no  means  their 
highest,  use.  A  house  everywhere  stands  as  the  repre- 
sentative image  of  home.  It  is  the  symbol  of  those 
home-born,  home-bred,  and  home-felt  joys  which  con- 
stitute "  that  best  portion  of  a  good  man's  life."  Suppose 
there  were  no  inclement  skies,  no  chilling  frosts,  nor 
scorching  heat,  nor  drenching  rains,  nor  pitiless  blasts, 
nor  anything,  indeed,  to  make  houses  necessary  to  bod- 
ily comfort,  does  it  follow  that  human  beings  would 
then  need  and  have  no  houses  ?  By  no  means  ;  for  so 
long  as  the  love  of  home  lives  in  the  hearts  of  good 
men  and  women,  so  long  will  some  kind  of  habitation 
be  sought  and  had  as  the  symbol  of  that  love.  Human 
beings,  and  especially  those  who  have  made  much  prog- 
ress in  regeneration,  will  have  houses  as  the  sanctuaries 
of  those  pure  domestic  joys  which  are  more  than  half 
the  solace  and  sunshine  and  fragrance  of  life. 

Therefore  houses,  though  not  needed  in  heaven  as  a 
defense  against  cold  and  storms,  are  needed  for  their 
higher  spiritual  uses.  And  as  sure  as  there  dwells  in 
the  hearts  of  angels  the  love  of  home  (and  we  cannot 
think  of  them  as  existing  without  this  love),  so  sure  is 
it  that  they  must  have  houses. 

Moreover,  the  outward  or  phenomenal  heaven  would 
lose  half  its  beauty  if  there  were  no  houses.    Picture  to 


232 


HE  A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


yourself  the  loveliest  rural  scene  imaginable — fields  and 
forests,  trees  and  lawns,  gardens  and  flowers,  singing- 
birds  and  gurgling  brooks,  fleecy  clouds  and  azure  skies 
— and  the  picture  would  be  clearly  defective  or  incom- 
plete without  human  habitations.  The  presence  of 
beautiful  houses  as  the  symbols  of  life's  sweetest  joys, 
would  be  indispensable  to  the  completeness  of  the 
scene.  The  aesthetic  element  of  our  nature  demands 
this. 

It  is  because  the  love  of  home  is  so  deeply  implanted 
in  the  human  heart,  that  we  always  feel  the  need  of  a 
house  as  its  symbol  to  complete  the  beauty  of  any  land- 
scape. Heaven,  therefore,  without  human  habitations 
would  be  lacking  in  one  important  element  of  beauty. 
It  would  not  be  our  conception  of  the  celestial  realms. 
Besides,  some  of  the  deepest,  tenderest,  and  best  feel- 
ings of  the  heart — feelings  which  can  be  developed  and 
kept  alive  only  in  the  sanctuary  of  home — could  not  be 
visibly  represented  in  heaven  without  houses.  There- 
fore these  feelings  could  not  live — could,  indeed,  have 
no  existence — in  heaven  ;  for  every  living  thing  in  the 
hearts  of  the  angels,  is  pictured  there  under  visible  and 
correspondential  forms.  This  is  the  law  which  under- 
lies and  determines  all  the  phenomena  of  the  other 
world — the  law  of  correspondence. 

That  there  should  be  houses  in  heaven,  therefore, 
seems  altogether  reasonable ;  and  not  only  reasonable, 
but,  if  the  inner  is  visibly  pictured  in  the  outer  world 
there,  there  must  be  houses.  The  great  law  that  deter- 
mines the  whole  aspect  of  the  phenomenal  world  in  the 
Hereafter,  necessitates  this  conclusion.    And  through 


HOLSES  AND  HOMES  IN  HEAVEN. 


the  operation  of  this  same  law,  the  habitations  of  the 
angels  ought  also  to  be  very  beautiful ;  for  these,  like 
all  their  other  surroundings,  being  the  normal  outbirth 
or  true  expression  of  their  interior  states,  should  be  in 
exact  correspondence  with  those  states ;  that  is,  in  cor- 
respondence with  their  prevailing  thoughts,  feelings, 
dispositions  and  motives — in  short,  with  their  ruling 
loves. 

Such  is  the  clear  verdict  of  reason  on  this  subject. 
Such  the  conclusion  reached  by  fair  and  logical  argu- 
ment based  upon  certain  known  principles  and  deeply 
implanted  instincts  of  our  better  nature.  And  now  let 
us  see  how  far  the  disclosures  made  through  Sweden- 
borg  agree  with  this  conclusion;  for,  if  true,  they  should 
not  be  in  conflict  with  reason.  The  following  extracts 
are  pertinent : 

"  Since  there  are  societies  in  heaven,  and  the  angels 
live  as  men,  therefore  they  have  habitations,  and  these 
likewise  various  according  to  each  one's  state  of  life  ; 
magnificent  for  those  in  a  state  of  superior  dignity,  and 
less  magnificent  for  those  in  an  inferior  condition.  .  .  I 
have  been  present  with  the  angels  in  their  habitations, 
which  are  precisely  like  those  on  earth  called  houses, 
but  more  beautiful.  They  contain  halls,  parlors  and 
bed-chambers  in  great  numbers ;  also  courts,  and  round 
about  them,  gardens,  fields  and  shrubberies.  Where 
the  angels  live  in  societies,  their  habitations  are  contig- 
uous, close  to  each  other,  and  arranged  in  the  form  of 
a  city,  with  streets,  alleys  and  public  squares,  exactly 
like  the  cities  on  earth.  It  has  also  been  granted  me 
to  walk  through  them,  and  occasionally  to  enter  the 
houses.  This  occurred  in  a  state  of  full  wakefulness, 
when  my  interior  sight  was  opened." — H.  H.  n.  183, 
184. 

20  * 


234 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


"  All  the  angels  have  their  own  habitations,  which 
are  magnificent.  I  have  occasionally  seen  them,  and 
admired  them,  and  have  there  conversed  with  the  occu- 
pants. They  are  so  distinct  and  conspicuous  that  noth- 
ing can  be  more  so.  The  houses  on  earth  are  scarcely 
anything  in  comparison.  Indeed,  the  angels  say  that 
such  things  on  earth  are  dead  and  not  real;  but  that 
their  own  are  alive  and  true,  because  they  are  fi-om  the 
Lord.  Their  architecture  is  such  as  to  be  the  ground 
and  source  of  the  architectural  art,  with  an  indefinite 
variety.  The  angels  have  assured  me  that,  if  they  could 
have  all  the  palaces  on  earth,  they  would  not  exchange 
their  own  for  them.  What  is  of  stone  and  mortar  and 
wood  is  to  them  dead  ;  but  what  is  from  the  Lord,  or 
from  essential  life  and  light,  this,  they  say,  is  alive — 
and  the  more  so,  as  they  enjoy  it  with  all  the  fulness 
of  sense.  For  the  things  in  heaven  are  perfectly  adapt- 
ed to  the  senses  of  spirits  and  angels;  while  things 
seen  in  the  light  of  this  solar  world  are  altogether  in- 
visible to  them. 

"  The  walls  of  the  habitations  of  angelic  spirits  are 
constructed  with  much  variety,  and  are  adorned  also 
with  flowers,  and  wreaths  of  flowers  wonderfully  com- 
posed, beside  many  other  ornaments,  which  are  varied 
in  an  orderly  succession.  At  one  time  they  appear  in 
a  clear  light;  at  another  time,  in  a  light  less  clear;  but 
always  with  interior  delight.  Their  houses  are  also 
changed  into  more  and  more  beautiful  ones,  as  the 
spirits  become  more  perfect  in  character." — A.  C.  n, 
1626-1630. 

"  I  have  seen  the  palaces  of  heaven,  which  were  mag- 
nificent beyond  description.  Their  upper  parts  shone 
refulgent  as  if  of  pure  gold,  and  their  lower  parts  as  if 
of  precious  stones.  Some  were  more  splendid  than 
others  ;  and  the  splendor  without  was  equalled  by  the 
magnificence  within.    The  apartments  were  ornamented 


HOUSES  AND  HOMES  IN  HEAVEN. 


with  decorations  which  no  words  can  adequately  de- 
scribe. 

"  I  have  also  been  informed  that  not  only  the  palaces 
and  houses,  but  the  minutest  particulars  both  within 
and  without  them,  correspond  to  the  interior  things  in 
the  angels  of  the  Lord  ;  that  the  house  itself  in  general 
corresponds  to  their  good,  and  the  various  things  with- 
in it  to  the  various  particulars  of  which  their  good  is 
composed." — H.  H.  n.  185,  186. 

Now  all  this  is  seen  to  be  in  perfect  agreement  with 
the  laws  of  the  spiritual  world  as  unfolded  by  the  same 
author.  It  is  precisely  what  might  have  been  logically 
inferred,  if  the  ruling  loves  of  heaven  and  the  law  that 
determines  the  phenomenal  world  there,  be  what  he  so 
often  tells  us  they  are.  Everything  he  has  said  about 
the  habitations  of  the  angels,  is  found  to  be  in  perfect 
harmony  with  all  his  other  disclosures,  and  to  follow 
by  strict  logical  sequence  from  his  fundamental  princi- 
ples. So  that  what  has  been  revealed  through  him  on 
this  subject  is  seen  to  have  the  merit  of  perfect  consist- 
ency ;  and  it  is  not  less  reasonable  than  consistent. 

The  houses  in  heaven,  we  are  told,  correspond  to  the 
character  or  internal  state  of  those  who  live  in  them. 
They  are  the  visible  representatives  of  the  ruling  loves 
of  their  occupants.  And  so  exact  is  the  correspondence 
that  no  angel  can  dwell  permanently  in  any  other  house 
than  his  own  ;  for  no  other  would  be  in  correspondence 
with  his  state  of  life.  His  house  is,  in  fact,  a  normal  out- 
birth  from  his  own  state,  built  up  or  created  from  it  and 
in  correspondence  with  it. 

As  the  angels  are  all  in  states  of  love  akin  to  the  Lord's 
own, — all  in  bright,  cheerful,  affectionate,  happy  states, 


236 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


— therefore  their  houses  are  all  very  beautiful.  But  there 
are  countless  degrees  and  k  'uids  of  good  in  which  the 
angels  are,  and  a  consequent  endless  diversity  of  state 
among  them,  just  as  there  are  among  good  men  and 
women  on  earth.  And  accordingly  their  habitations, 
although  they  are  all  beautiful,  are  all  somewhat  differ- 
ent, corresponding  to  their  different  kinds  and  degrees 
of  good.  There  is  the  same  endless  diversity  in  the 
heavenly  habitations  that  there  is  in  the  character  of 
their  occupants; — the  same,  indeed,  that  characterizes 
the  face  of  the  whole  habitable  earth  and  every  part  of 
the  material  universe. 

In  the  spiritual  world  every  one's  own  state  determines 
not  only  the  character  of  his  habitation,  but  his  place  of 
abode  and -all  his  surroundings.  And  he  can  feel  per- 
fectly at  home  nowhere  but  in  the  midst  of  surroundings 
which  are  in  correspondence  with  his  inner  life.  This 
is  both  reasonable  and  probable.  The  same  law  is  op- 
erative among  men  on  earth,  and  with  close  approxima- 
tion to  the  same  results.  The  character  of  every  one 
does,  in  time,  reveal  itself  to  some  extent  in  his  earthly 
surroundings  ;  and  there  is  ever  a  strong  tendency  in  this 
direction.  If  possessed  of  ample  means,  and  left  to  act 
in  perfect  freedom,  each  one  chooses  a  location  and  builds 
and  furnishes  a  house  corresponding  to  his  idea  of  beauty, 
comfort  and  convenience.  Give  to  some  people  the  most 
magnificent  habitation  filled  and  surrounded  with  every- 
thing beautiful,  and  leave  them  to  do  with  it  as  they 
please,  and  how  long  will  it  be  before  that  palatial  resi- 
dence will  be  changed  to  a  loathsome  den  ?  Of  a  nature 
(inherited  or  acquired)  akin  to  that  of  certain  animals, 


HOUSES  AND  HOMES  IN  HEAVEN.  237 


they  will,  erelong,  convert  the  loveliest  habitation  into 
a  squalid  stye.  Place  them  vt^here  you  will,  amid  what- 
ever scenes  of  beauty  or  magnificence,  and  they  cannot 
fail  in  time  to  stamp  their  own  character  on  all  their  sur- 
roundings. And  on  the  other  hand,  place  people  of  re- 
finement and  culture  in  the  humblest  cabin,  and  will  they 
not  in  time  so  beautify  and  adorn  that  cabin,  that  it  will 
reveal  to  the  intelligent  observer  something  of  their  re- 
fined and  cultivated  tastes  ?  And  the  reason  is  obvious  ; 
for  every  kind  of  life  is  delighted  with,  and  therefore 
seeks,  that  and  only  ih.:it  which  corresponds  with  its  own 
nature. 

And  the  same  great  law  that  fashions  the  habitations 
and  the  whole  outward  aspect  of  heaven,  is  (as  might 
be  expected,  if  true)  no  less  operative  or  potential  in 
hell.  Character  (good  or  bad)  shapes  each  one's  house 
and  all  his  surroundings  in  the  other  world,  in  complete 
correspondence  with  itself  And  while  the  heavenly 
abodes  are  all  inconceivably  bright  and  beautiful,  those 
of  the  nether  regions  are  correspondingly  dark  and 
loathsome.    Says  Swedenborg : 

"  All  those  who  are  in  evil,  and  have  confirmed  them- 
selves in  falsities  against  the  truths  of  the  church,  and 
especially  those  who  have  rejected  the  Word,  [in  the 
other  world]  shun  the  light  of  heaven,  and  betake  them- 
selves to  subterranean  places  and  clefts  of  the  rocks, 
and  hide  there.  And  they  seek  such  retreats  because 
they  have  loved  falsities  and  hated  truths ;  for  such  cav- 
erns and  clefts  of  rocks  and  darkness  correspond  to 
falsities,  and  light  corresponds  to  truth.  .  .  They  who 
have  been  sordidly  avaricious  dwell  in  huts  and  love 
swinish  filth  [such  things  being  in  correspondence  with 
their  state  of  life]."— H.  H.  n.  488. 


238 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


Now,  it  is  every  one's  ruling^  love  which  determines 
his  real  character  or  state.  And  a  house  being  the  place 
of  one's  residence,  corresponds  to  his  state.  Each  one's 
dominant  love,  therefore,  fashions  his  spiritual  house. 
For  this  love  is  the  heart's  home-centre.  It  is  where 
the  individual  lives  spiritually.  It  is  the  point  towards 
which  his  soul  perpetually  gravitates,  as  surely  as  a  ball 
suspended  in  the  air  forever  gravitates  towards  the  centre 
of  the  earth,  or  as  the  heart  of  a  mother  who  loves  her 
children  and  her  household  duties,  perpetually  gravi- 
tates towards  her  home  whenever  she  is  absent  from  it. 
Every  one's  thoughts  and  purposes  are  shaped  and  di- 
rected by  his  ruling  love.  If  this  be  the  love  of  wealth, 
of  reputation,  of  preferment,  of  power,  he  will  be  con- 
tinually meditating  plans  b}^  which  to  obtain  what  his 
heart  longs  for.  Or  if  it  be  the  love  of  the  Lord  and 
the  neighbor — the  love  of  truth,  justice,  sincerity,  up- 
rightness, and  of  enlightening,  improving  and  blessing 
his  fellow- men,  then  will  his  thoughts  centre  on  these 
things,  and  be  chiefly  occupied  with  plans  for  promoting 
them.  So  obviously  true  is  it  that  each  one's  ruling 
love  is  the  determining  force  within  him.  This  is  his 
heart's  centre, — the  point  towards  which  his  whole  being 
gravitates  and  around  which  it  perpetually  revolves. 
This  is  his  spiritual  dwelling-place,  his  habitation,  his 
liouic.  And  this,  therefore,  is  what  every  one's  house  in 
the  Hereafter  represents  or  images  to  the  outward  eye. 

And  since  the  law  which  determines  the  phenomenal 
world  in  the  spiritual  realm,  is  the  very  same  as  that 
which  determines  the  letter  of  the  Word, — that  is,  the 
law  of  correspondence,  which  is  none  other  than  the 


HOUSES  AND  HOMES  IN  HEAVEN.  239 


relation  of  cause  and  effect, — therefore  Swedenborg's 
descriptions  of  the  phenomena  of  the  other  world,  and 
his  unfoldings  of  the  internal  sense  of  the  Word,  ought 
not  only  to  harmonize,  but  mutually  to  confirm  and  il- 
lustrate each  other.  And  this  they  are  found  to  do  in  a 
manner  so  remarkable  and  striking  as  clearly  to  demon- 
strate the  truth  of  both.  It  is,  as  we  have  often  re- 
marked, one  of  those  verifications  of  the  truth  of  his 
statements,  such  as  no  human  ingenuity,  however  subtle, 
could  have  possibly  contrived  and  in  all  cases  made  to 
tally. 

Take  the  case  of  houses  in  heaven,  and  their  corre- 
spondence and  significance.  The  Psalmist  says,  "  One 
thing  have  I  desired  of  the  Lord,  that  will  I  seek  after, 
that  I  may  dwell  in  the  house  of  the  Lord  all  the  days 
of  my  life,  to  behold  the  beauty  of  the  Lord  and  to  in- 
quire in  his  temple  "  (xxvii.  4).  Is  this  to  be  understood 
literally?  If  so,  one  can  hardly  conceive  of  a  more 
unreasonable  desire  than  is  here  expressed.  But,  under- 
stood in  its  spiritual  sense,  the  thing  which  the  Psalmist 
here  longs  for  above  all  else,  is  worthy  the  intense  long- 
ing and  supreme  effort  of  every  human  being.  For 
"  the  house  of  the  Lord,"  interpreted  by  the  rule  of  cor- 
respondence, means  the  will  or  life  of  the  Lord, — his 
pure  and  unselfish  love.  To  dwell  in  this  house  is  to 
dwell  in  Him,  or  in  that  disinterested  love  which  is  from 
Him  and  is  Himself — a  love  which  pours  itself  forth 
liberally  as  the  ever-bountiful  sun, — a  love  which  never 
seeks  its  own,  but  always  the  good  of  others.  To  dwell 
in  this  love  is  to  have  this  love  dwelling  and  operative 
in  us.    As  saith  the  beloved  disciple,  "  God  is  love,  and 


2\0 


HE  A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


he  that  dwelleth  in  love  dwelleth  in  God  and  God  in 
him."  Is  there  anything  so  much  to  be  desired  as  this  ? 
It  is  the  noblest,  highest,  happiest  state  which  a  human 
being  can  attain  to.  It  is  the  truly  human  state ;  yea, 
it  is  the  heavenly  state. 

Interpreting  the  Psalmist's  language  spiritually,  there- 
fore, or  by  the  rule  of  correspondence,  we  see  that  the 
thing  he  desired  and  resolved  to  seek  above  all  else,  is 
the  thing  worthy  of  every  one's  supreme  affection  and 
best  endeavor.  It  is,  indeed,  what  every  regenerating 
soul  must  desire  and  seek  after  as  the  supreme  good. 

Again,  after  saying,  "  The  Lord  is  my  Shepherd :  I 
shall  not  therefore  want,"  the  same  inspired  writer  ex- 
claims, "  Surely  goodness  and  mercy  shall  follow  me  all 
the  days  of  my  life,  and  I  shall  dwell  in  the  house  of  the 
Lord  forever."  (xxiii.  6.)  What  sort  of  a  house  can 
here  be  meant?  the  thoughtful  inquirer  will  again  ask. 
Not  any  temporary,  earthly,  or  material  structure,  but 
that  spiritual,  heavenly  and  eternal  habitation  which  is 
the  Lord's  own, — that  sweet  and  all-embracing  love 
which  is  himself,  his  own  essential  life, — that  "  house  not 
made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens."  And  every 
one  comes  into  and  evermore  abides  in  this  house,  who, 
through  self-denial  and  inward  conflict,  and  obedience 
to  the  known  laws  of  the  Lord,  comes  into  a  state  of 
disinterested  neighborly  love.  So  that  this  language  of 
the  Psalmist,  in  its  spiritual  sense,  is  seen  to  be,  like  all 
inspired  language,  of  universal  application.  Every  soul 
that  takes  the  Lord  for  his  shepherd  and  guide,  and 
faithfully  follows  Him,  may  be  sure  of  the  abundant  and 
continued  influx  of  his  goodness  and  mercy,  and  may 


HOUSES  AND  HOMES  IN  HEAVEN. 


241 


confidently  say,  "  I  shall  dwell  in  the  house  of  the  Lord 
forever." 

And  so  of  other  passages  in  the  Word  which  speak 
of  "  the  Father's  house,"  "  the  house  of  the  Lord,"  "  the 
house  of  the  God  of  Jacob,"  etc.,  and  of"  going  up  to  " 
and  "  dwelling  in  "  that  house.  When  the  correspond- 
ence or  spiritual  meaning  of  house  is  understood,  such 
passages  are  seen  to  have  something  more  than  a  local 
or  Jewish  significance.  They  are  seen  to  be  full  of  in- 
struction for  people  of  every  age  and  nation  ;  for  it  is 
seen  that  at  all  times  and  in  all  places,  even  where  there 
is  no  visible  temple  or  place  of  external  and  formal  wor- 
ship, souls  may  be  ever  "  going  up  to  the  mount  of  the 
Lord,  to  the  house  of  the  God  of  Jacob." 

And  Swedenborg  further  tells  us  that  houses  in  heaven, 
like  the  best  houses  on  earth,  have  many  separate  apart- 
ments,— inner-chambers  and  closets;  and  these  corre- 
spond to  the  more  interior  recesses  of  every  soul,  to  the 
secret  motives  of  every  heart.  They  are  the  visible  sym- 
bols of  those  interior  states  to  which  the  devout  believer 
retires  when  he  wishes  to  be  alone  with  God — to  "  com- 
mune with  his  own  heart " — to  examine  himself  in  the 
light  of  divine  truth.  It  is  to  such  interior  states — to 
these  deeper  recesses  of  the  heart,  that  reference  is  had 
in  the  spiritual  sense  of  the  Lord's  words,  where  He  says, 
"When  thou  prayest,  enter  into  thy  closet;"  for  there, 
in  the  secret  closet  of  the  soul,  is  the  place  for  all  genuine 
prayer  and  worship — for  all  real  fellowship  and  vital  union 
with  Him  who  seeth  in  secret,  and  whose  reward  is  sure. 

And  thus  we  find  that,  between  Swedenborg's  dis- 
closures of  the  facts  and  phenomena  of  the  spiritual 
21  Q 


242 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


world  and  his  spiritual  interpretations  of  the  Scripture, 
there  is  no  disagreement  but  perfect  harmony.  -  And  this 
harmony  is  such  as  no  human  ingenuity  could  ever  have 
invented  ;  such,  indeed,  as  clearly  demonstrates  the  truth 
of  both.  If  the  law  which  determines  the  phenomenal 
world  in  the  great  Beyond,  be  the  same  as  that  according 
to  which  the  Divine  of  the  Lord  forever  descends  to 
ultimates,  according  to  which  the  inspired  Word  was 
composed,  according  to  which  creation  is  effected, — 
namely,  the  law  of  correspondence  between  the  interior 
and  exterior,  or  between  cause  and  effect, — then  we 
should  expect  to  find  in  the  teachings  of  the  seer  pre- 
cisely the  harmony  to  which  we  have  referred,  and  which 
actually  exists  there. 

Briefly  to  sum  up  what  has  been  said : — 
The  heaven  that  Swcdcnborg  tells  us  of  is  a  thor- 
oughly human  heaven.  And  since  it  is  human,  there 
must  be  homes  and  consequently  human  habitations 
there.  These,  like  everything  else  in  the  other  world, 
are  spiritual  in  their  nature.  This,  too,  is  the  testimony 
of  both  reason  and  Scripture.  The  houses  in  heaven 
arc  growths — creations — from  within,  and  therefore  in 
perfect  correspondence  with  the  states  of  their  occu- 
pants. They  are  the  normal  outbirths  of  the  loves 
which  rule  in  the  hearts  of  the  angels — of  loves  which 
constitute  their  very  being,  and  in  whose  exercise  they 
live  and  find  their  supreme  delight.  Beautiful  and 
magnificent  are  they,  too,  according  to  the  breadth,  ex- 
altation, purity  and  intensity  of  their  love;  yet  differ- 
ing from  each  other  as  the  angels  themselves  differ — 
thus  enhancing  the  beauty  and  joy  of  heaven  by  their 


irOUSEr,  AND  HOMES  IN  HEAVEN.  243 


endless  variety.  And  what  is  there  in  all  this  that  is 
contrary  to  reason,  to  the  teachings  of  Scripture,  or  to 
our  highest  conceptions  of  the  wisdom  and  love  and 
providence  of  God  ? 

Then  look  at  its  practical  tendency — its  immediate 
and  direct  bearing  upon  the  life  and  character  of  the  be- 
liever. Is  it  not  obviously  good  and  wholesome  ?  In 
the  light  of  these  disclosures  we  see  that  all  the  splen- 
did habitations  and  magnificent  palaces  of  heaven  are 
but  pictorial  representations,  under  the  great  law  of 
correspondence,  of  the  ruling  loves  of  the  angels.  They 
are  the  exact  images  of  their  dominant  affections,  re- 
flecting with  mathematical  precision  their  inner  life  and 
character.  It  is  each  one's  ruling  love  that  fashions  and 
adorns  his  house  in  the  other  world,  the  inner  cham- 
bers and  closets  of  which,  with  all  their  furniture,  are  but 
the  correspondential  images  of  his  secret  motives  and 
hidden  purposes.  And  he  cannot  possibly  have  or 
dwell  in  any  other  house  than  that  which  is  in  corre- 
spondence with  his  character. 

So  that,  when  our_  fleshly  tabernacle  is  dissolved,  if 
we  would  dwell  in  the  beautiful  mansions  on  high,  we 
can  hope  to  do  so  only  by  developing  and  carrying 
with  us  the  angelic  loves  of  which  those  mansions  are 
the  visible  symbols.  We  must  begin  on  earth  to  live 
the  life  of  heaven  ;  must  imbibe  here,  and  carry  with 
us  into  the  Hereafter,  something  of  that  heavenly  spirit 
which  creates  for  the  angels  their  magnificent  abodes ; 
must  begin  here  to  find  our  life  and  delight  in  the  per- 
formance of  useful  deeds  from  high  and  heavenly  mo- 
tives; must  begin  to  make  the  Lord's  unselfish  love  the 


244 


HE.  I  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


sweet  and  familiar  dwelling-place  of  our  souls.  For, 
according  to  the  dispositions  we  indulge,  the  purposes 
we  cherish,  the  plans  of  life  we  pursue,  the  motives  we 
allow  to  govern  us,  we  are  actually  building  while  here 
on  earth  our  everlasting  habitations; — building  them 
beautiful  and  symmetrical  like  the  palaces  of  heaven, 
if  our  ends  of  life  be  high  and  heavenly,  but  dark  and 
dismal  like  the  abodes  of  hell,  if  our  ends  be  mean  and 
selfish. 


XX. 

GARMENTS  IN  HE  A  VEN. 

ANOTHER  question  which  people  arc  inclined  to 
ask  about  heaven,  is :  Are  the  angels  clad  in  gar- 
ments? If  so,  are  they  all  clothed  alike?  And  if  not 
alike,  upon  what  does  the  diversity  depend  ?  What  de- 
termines the  character  and  quality  of  their  garments? 
The  following  are  Swedenborg's  answers  to  these  ques- 
tions : 

"  Since  angels  are  men,  and  live  together  in  society 
like  men  on  earth,  therefore  they  have  garments.  .  .  . 
Their  garments  correspond  to  their  intelligence.  There- 
fore all  in  heaven  appear  clothed  according  to  their  in- 
telligence ;  and  because  some  excel  others  in  intelli- 
gence, therefore  they  have  more  excellent  garments. 
The  most  intelligent  have  garments  that  glitter  as  from 
flame,  and  some  have  garments  that  shine  as  from  light. 
The  less  intelligent  have  bright  and  white  garments 
without  splendor;  and  the  still  less  intelligent  have 
garments  of  different  colors. 


GARMEiVTS  IN  HE  A  VEN. 


245 


"Since  the  garments  of  the  angels  correspond  to  their 
inteUigence,  therefore  they  correspond  also  to  truth,  for 
all  intelligence  is  from  divine  truth.  Therefore  whether 
we  say  that  angels  are  clothed  according  to  intelligence 
or  according  to  divine  truth,  it  is  the  same  thing.  The 
garments  of  some  glitter  as  from  flame,  and  those  of 
others  shine  as  from  light,  because  flame  corresponds 
to  good,  and  light  to  truth  derived  from  good.  The 
garments  of  some  are  bright  and  white  without  splen- 
dor, and  those  of  others  are  of  diverse  colors,  because 
the  divine  good  and  truth  are  less  refulgent,  and  also 
variously  received,  with  the  less  intelligent. 

"  That  the  garments  of  the  angels  do  not  merely  ap- 
pear as  garments,  but  that  they  really  are  garments,  is 
manifest  from  these  considerations:  that  they  not  only 
see  them,  but  also  feel  them  ;  that  they  have  many  gar- 
ments ;  that  they  take  them  off  and  put  them  on ;  that 
they  lay  aside  those  which  are  not  in  use,  and  when 
they  come  into  use  again  they  resume  them.  That 
they  are  clothed  with  a  variety  of  garments  I  have  wit- 
nessed a  thousand  times.  I  inquired  whence  they  ob- 
tained them,  and  they  told  me  from  the  Lord  ;  that  they 
received  them  as  gifts,  and  that  they  are  sometimes 
clothed  without  knowing  how.  They  also  said  that 
their  garments  are  changed  according  to  the  changes 
of  their  state ;  that  in  the  first  and  second  states  they 
are  bright  and  shining,  and  in  the  third  and  fourth 
states  rather  more  dim ;  and  that  this  also  is  from  cor- 
respondence, because  their  changes  of  state  are  changes 
as  to  intelligence  and  wisdom. 

"  Since  every  one  in  the  spiritual  world  is  clothed  ac- 
cording to  his  intelligence,  thus  according  to  the  truths 
from  which  his  intelligence  is  derived,  therefore  those 
in  the  hells,  being  without  truths,  appear  only  in  torn, 
squalid  and  miserable  garments,  each  one  according  to 
his  insanity.  Nor  can  they  wear  any  others." — H.  H.  n, 
177-81. 


246 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


Here,  again,  wc  are  told  that  it  is  because  angels  are 
vicn,  and  live  together  in  society  like  men  on  earth,  that 
they  are  clad  in  garments — the  same  reason,  observe, 
which  was  assigned  for  their  dwelling  in  houses.  The 
argument,  brief  as  it  is,  when  duly  considered  is  seen  to 
be  one  of  immense  force.  It  will  bear  expansion — re- 
quires it,  indeed,  that  its  full  force  may  be  seen  and  felt. 
In  its  expanded  form  it  may  be  stated  thus  : 

Man  is  endowed  by  his  Creator  with  a  certain  consti- 
tution, physical  and  moral ;  and  this  constitution  has  its 
laws.  His  physical  or  material  organization  perishes, 
but  the  moral  or  spiritual,  which  is  the  real,  never  dies. 
And  the  laws  of  his  immortal  part  remain  forever  the 
same.  And  belonging  to  this  part  of  our  nature,  even 
when  regenerate,  are  certain  implanted  instincts,  wants 
and  tendencies.  And  these  must  remain  so  long  as 
man's  spiritual  constitution  remains,  or  so  long  as  he 
continues  to  be  man.  And  while  they  remain,  they 
impel  him  in  certain  directions,  and  necessitate  a  certain 
environment.  For  example,  he  is  gifted  with  a  social 
nature  which  impels  him  to  seek  the  society  of  his  fel- 
lows. And  as  this  tendency  belongs  to  our  immortal 
part,  it  must  exist  in  the  Hereafter,  and  will  therefore  ne- 
cessitate the  existence  of  societies  in  the  spiritual  world. 

Another  of  the  laws  or  God-implanted  tendencies  of 
our  moral  nature,  is  that  of  spiritual  affinity,  which  im- 
pels each  one  to  seek  the  society  of  kindred  spirits. 
This  law  or  tendency  can  never  cease  until  we  cease  to 
be  human.  Its  active  force  in  the  Hereafter,  therefore, 
necessitates  the  arrangement  of  angels  and  spirits  into 
innumerable  societies. 


GARMENTS  IN  HEAVEN. 


247 


Another  of  the  implanted  instincts  of  our  immortal 
nature,  and  which  will  therefore  endure  so  long  as  the 
soul  endures,  is  the  love  of  home.  And  this  love  ne- 
cessitates the  existence  of  that  visible  symbol  of  home, 
the  house,  as  the  only  means  of  fully  satisfying  this 
want  of  the  soul.  Hence,  we  are  told,  the  angels  have 
houses  and  live  in  them  because  they  arc  men,  with  the 
wants,  affections  and  tendencies  of  men,  alive  and  active 
in  them.  And  for  the  same  reason,  also,  angels  are  clad 
in  garments, — because  they  are  men. 

Remarks  similar  to  those  made  respecting  houses  in 
heaven,  are  applicable  also  to  the  disclosure  about  gar- 
ments there.  For  these  have  a  moral  or  spiritual  as 
surely  as  they  have  a  physical  use,  even  here  on  earth. 
They  are  required  for  the  satisfaction  of  the  soul,  no  less 
than  for  the  protection  and  comfort  of  the  body.  Our 
spiritual  nature  demands  them  for  the  gratification  of  its 
God-given  wants.  And  if  it  calls  for  them  here,  it  will 
call  for  them  in  the  world  beyond.  If  garments  on  earth 
were  worn  merely  for  the  body's  comfort  and  safety, 
why  are  they  not  laid  aside  when  the  weather  is  such 
that  the  body  does  not  need  them  ?  True,  this,  or  some- 
thing approaching  it,  is  done  in  some  parts  of  our  world. 
But  what  parts  ?  Not  where  man's  higher  nature  is 
most  developed,  and  the  angel- life  in  him  is  most  con- 
spicuous, but  where  this  nature  is  most  shriveled  and 
debased — where  the  angel  is  most  hidden  beneath  the 
bestial  life,  and  man  approaches  nearest  to  the  condition 
of  the  brutes. 

As  some  evidence  of  the  moral  signification  and  use 
of  dress  among  men,  see  how  various  are  the  garments 


248 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


of  different  people  even  in  the  same  climate,  country, 
city  or  village — various  in  color,  form  and  material. 
This  variety  results  from  the  variety  of  mental  states — 
from  a  diversity  of  tastes  which  is  its  underlying  and 
efficient  cause ;  and  it  proves  that  garments  are  chosen 
to  gratify  an  implanted  want  of  the  soul  not  less  than 
an  immanent  need  of  the  body. 

The  same  truth  is  further  evinced  by  the  well-known 
fact  that  the  soul  of  the  same  individual  instinctively 
craves  different  garments  when  in  different  states.  To- 
day you  wear  one  that  satisfies  the  demands  of  both 
body  and  soul.  To-morrow  some  specially  sad  or  joyous 
event  occurs,  and  the  soul  requires  a  different  garment 
— more  sombre  or  more  gay  according  to  the  nature  of 
the  event,  and  thus  corresponding  more  truly  with  your 
mental  state.  Everyone  perceives  how  inappropriate  a 
ball-room  dress  would  be  at  a  funeral, — so  inappropriate, 
indeed,  that  our  best  feelings  would  be  disturbed  if  not 
shocked  by  such  unfitness.  And  why  ?  Clearly  because 
there  are  certain  wants  of  the  soul  as  well  as  of  the  body 
which  garments  are  required  to  satisfy.  And  a  brilliant 
dress  on  a  solemn  occasion  fails  to  meet  this  require- 
ment. Why  do  little  children  prefer  garments  of  bright 
and  gay  colors  ?  Not  because  these  make  their  bodies 
more  comfortable,  but  because  they  better  correspond 
with,  and  satisfy  the  requirements  of,  their  gay  and  glad- 
some spirits.  For  a  similar  reason  old  age  usually  pre- 
fers garments  of  grave  and  sombre  colors ;  for  such 
colors  are  in  close  correspondence  with  the  sober 
thoughts  of  age,  and  therefore  more  satisfying  to  the 
soul's  requirements. 


GARMENTS  IN  HEAVEN. 


249 


Why  is  it,  again,  that  children  are  so  fond  of  new 
garments,  and  love  to  change  their  garments  so  often  ? 
While  aged  people  are  content  to  wear  the  same  dress 
for  years,  and  care  little  or  nothing  for  change  of  style 
or  color  ?  The  difference  in  their  mental  states  furnishes 
the  all-sufficient  answer.  The  states  of  little  children — 
their  thoughts  and  feelings — change  quickly  and  often  ; 
while  those  of  the  aged  are  comparatively  fixed  and 
stationary. 

It  is  plain  to  be  seen,  therefore,  that  there  is  a  mean- 
ing to  garments  as  worn  here  on  earth.  They  signify 
and  reveal  something  of  the  wearer's  mental  state — 
which  they  could  not  do  if  they  had  not  a  spiritual  as 
well  as  a  natural  use  to  subserve ;  if  they  did  not  meet 
a  want  of  the  soul  as  well  as  of  the  body.  The  universal 
human  heart  has  ever  had  a  perception  of  this  truth  ; 
for  in  all  ages  men  have  recognized  the  propriety  of  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  garments,  corresponding  to  and  indicative 
of  different  kinds  and  degrees  of  intelligence,  and  differ- 
ent stations  and  occupations  in  life.  Thus  the  queen's 
or  emperor's  robe,  the  judge's  gown,  the  bishop's  sur- 
plice, the  soldier's  coat,  the  sailor's  jacket,  and  the  cob- 
bler's apron,  are  each  appropriate  to  the  wearer's  function. 
And  if  the  positions  and  occupations  of  men  in  this 
world  were  always  according  to  their  intelligence  and 
capabilities,  then  their  garments,  being  according  to 
each  one's  use  or  function,  would  correspond  with  and 
indicate  the  kind  and  degree  of  their  natural  intelligence, 
— as  in  the  spiritual  world  each  one's  garments  corre- 
spond with  his  spiritual  intelligence. 


250 


HE  A  VEN  RE  I  -EA  L  ED. 


To  sum  up  the  rational  argument  for  the  truth  of  Swe- 
denborg's  disclosure  on  this  subject: 

We  have  ample  warrant  for  affirming  that  garments, 
even  in  this  world,  subserve  a  spiritual  as  well  as  a 
natural  use ;  that  they  are  required  not  less  to  satisfy 
the  wants  and  appetencies  of  the  soul,  than  the  imma- 
nent needs  of  the  body.  And  as  the  soul  is  immortal, 
and  retains  all  its  wants  and  appetencies  when  released 
from  the  incumbrance  of  gross  matter,  it  will  desire  gar- 
ments in  the  spiritual  world.  And  since  all  lawful  de- 
sires (and  the  angels  have  no  others)  will  be  gratified  in 
heaven,  therefore  its  denizens  must  be  clad  in  garments. 
And  because  of  that  great  and  universal  law  which  de- 
termines the  aspect  of  all  outward  things  in  the  spiritual 
world,  their  garments  must  correspond  to  their  states  of 
intelligence,  and  change  with  the  changes  of  their  states 
— as  Swedenborg  has  many  times  declared. 

Let  us  now  look  at  the  Scripture  testimony.  The 
Bible  makes  frequent  mention  of  angels,  and  always 
speaks  of  them  as  being  clothed.  Their  garments,  or 
the  color  and  aspect  of  them,  are  often  spoken  of  Thus 
it  is  said  of  the  angel  that  rolled  the  stone  away  from 
the  door  of  the  sepulchre,  that  "  his  countenance  was 
like  lightning,  and  his  raiment  white  as  snow."  And 
when  the  weeping  Mary  looked  into  the  sepulchre,  the 
record  says  she  saw  "  two  angels  in  white,  sitting,  the 
one  at  the  head  and  the  other  at  the  feet  where  the  body 
of  Jesus  had  lain."  And  Luke  speaks  of  these  two 
angels  as  "two  men  in  shining  garments."  (xxiv.  4.) 
And  in  the  Revelation  the  four  and  twenty  elders  are 
spoken  of  as  "  clothed  in  white  raiment."    They,  also, 


GARMENTS  IN  HEAVEN. 


251 


that  stood  before  tlie  throne  and  the  Lamb,  were  "clothed 
in  white  robes."  And  "  white  robes  were  given  to  every 
one  of  them  "  that  were  under  the  altar.  Again  it  is 
said  that  the  armies  which  the  seer  beheld  "  in  heaven  " 
following  Him  who  was  "  called  Faithful  and  True,"  and 
"  on  whose  head  were  many  crowns,"  were  "  clothed  in 
fine  linen  clean  and  white."  And  of  him  "  that  over- 
cometh  "  it  is  said,  "  the  same  shall  be  clothed  in  white 
raiment."    (Chs.  iii.,  vi.,  vii.,  xiii.,  xiv.,  xix.) 

The  testimony  of  the  Bible,  therefore,  is  ample  and 
conclusive  on  this  subject,  and  in  complete  accord  with 
that  of  reason  and  the  disclosures  of  the  illumined 
Swede. 

Then  see  how  intimately  these  disclosures  arc  con- 
nected with  the  deeper  or  heavenly  meaning  of  the  Scrip- 
ture, and  what  light  they  throw  upon  many  portions  of 
it.  For  everything  that  appears  in  heaven,  is  in  corre- 
spondence with  something  belonging  to  angelic  minds, 
and  is  the  visible  image  thereof.  And  garments,  we  are 
told,  correspond  to  spiritual  intelligence,  and  therefore 
represent  the  truths  or  thoughts  that  clothe  the  aff-'ctions 
of  the  wearers. 

"  Both  angels  and  spirits  appear  clothed  in  garments, 
and  every  one  according  to  his  truth.  They  who  are 
in  genuine  divine  truths  appear  clothed  in  white  shining 
garments  ;  and  others  in  others.  Some  spirits  do  not 
know  whence  garments  come  to  them,  but  they  are  put 
on  while  they  are  ignorant  of  it.  And  their  garments 
vary  according  to  the  changes  of  their  state  as  to  truths. 
In  a  word,  their  intellectual  is  what  is  exhibited  and 
represented  by  garments ;  for  the  intellectual  of  every 
one  is  formed  by  truths,  and  becomes  of  such  a  quality 


252 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


as  are  truths  from  which  it  is  formed.  The  intellectual 
appertaining  to  the  angels  of  heaven  is  in  their  internal, 
hence  they  have  white  shining  garments ;  the  shining 
is  from  the  divine  good,  and  the  whiteness  is  from  the 
light  of  heaven,  which  is  the  div  ine  truth.  But  the  gar- 
ments of  those  who  are  in  things  external  without  an 
internal  principle,  are  dirty  and  tattered,  like  those  of 
beggars  in  the  streets  and  of  robbers  in  forests." — A.  C. 
n.  10,536;  also  n.  5248. 

From  this  we  may  readily  understand  the  spiritual 
signification  of  the  garments  of  Jerusalem,  and  her 
comely  ornaments ;  and  may  see  what  is  meant  by  the 
"  wedding  garment,"  without  which  there  can  be  no  ad- 
mission into  the  heavenly  kingdom  ;  and  why  we  are 
commanded  to  keep  our  garments  clean,  or  to  guard 
against  their  defilement.  Thus,  in  Isaiah  we  read: 
"Put  on  thy  beautiful  garments,  O  Jerusalem"  (Hi.  i). 
By  Jerusalem  is  meant  the  Lord's  church,  viewed  in- 
dividually or  collectively.  And  what  are  her  gar- 
ments but  the  truths  of  wisdom  from  the  Word  of  God? 
These  are  the  appropriate  cloLhing  of  whatever  there  is 
of  God's  love  in  human  hearts.  They  are,  therefore, 
the  beautiful  garments  of  Jerusalem.  And  when  Jeru- 
salem (the  individual  or  collective  church)  is  brought 
into  perfect  marriage  union  with  the  Lord,  and  becomes 
his  own,  this  is  the  Divine  testimony  respecting  her  or- 
naments and  apparel : 

"  I  clothed  thee  also  with  broidered  work  and  shod 
thee  with  badger's  skins ;  and  I  girded  thee  about  with 
fine  linen,  and  covered  thee  with  silk.  I  decked  thee 
also  with  ornaments,  and  put  bracelets  upon  thine  hands 
and  a  chain  on  thy  neck.    And  I  put  a  jewel  on  thy 


GARMEXTS  IX  HE  A  VEX. 


forehead,  and  ear-rings  in  thine  ears,  and  a  beautiful 
crown  upon  thine  head.  Thus  wast  thou  decked  with 
gold  and  silver;  and  thy  raiment  was  of  fine  linen  and 
silk  and  broidered  work  .  .  .  And  .  .  .  thy  beauty  was 
perfect  through  my  comeliness  which  I  had  put  upon 
thee,  saith  the  Lord  God."    (Ezek.  xvi.  IO-14.) 

All  moral  or  spiritual  beauty  is  the  Lord's  own  come- 
liness ;  for  it  is  his  own  life  in  the  soul  of  man.  He 
stamps  his  comeliness  on  all  who  become  spiritually 
conjoined  to  Him  through  obedience  of  life,  and  this  it 
is  that  makes  their  souls  beautiful.  He  clothes  and 
adorns  their  minds  with  the  precious  and  various  truths 
of  his  wisdom.  These  are  the  beautiful  garments  and 
precious  jewels  wherewith  He  ever  decks  Jerusalem  his 
Bride.  And  in  the  other  world  where  all  the  inner 
qualities  of  the  soul  manifest  themselves  to  the  outward 
sense,  those  who  have  received  the  beautiful  and  pre- 
cious life  of  the  Lord,  appear  clad  in  garments  of  cor- 
responding beauty. 

And  when  the  interiors  of  the  soul  arc  completely 
laid  open — as  is  the  case  with  all  shortly  after  they  en- 
ter the  other  world — or,  what  is  the  same,  when  the 
Lord  comes  in  with  his  revealing  light  and  life,  it  then 
becomes  manifest  whether  that  soul  is  and  has  been 
inwardly  a  worshiper  of  self  and  the  world,  or  of  the 
Lord  in  his  Divine  Humanity.  If  the  former,  he  can 
have  no  permanent  abode  in  the  kingdom  of  light,  but 
only  in  the  "  outer  darkness,"  however  fair  and  beauti- 
ful may  have  been  his  outward  life  and  character;  but 
if  the  latter,  he  is  inwardly  wedded  to  the  Lord  by 
love,  and  his  thoughts  thence  proceeding  are  thoughts 

22 


254 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


of  corresponding  truth  and  loveliness.  His  mind  is 
clothed  with  celestial  intelligence;  he  has  on  "the 
wedding  garment."  And  from  this  we  may  understand 
the  meaning  of  the  parable  of  the  marriage  of  the  king's 
son  (Matt,  xxii ),  and  why  it  is  said  that  "  when  the 
king  came  in,"  and  "  saw  there  a  man  not  having  on  a 
wedding  garment,"  he  gave  commandment  that  he  be 
taken  away,  and  "  cast  into  the  outer  darkness."  All 
divine  laws  are  self-executing.  And  the  soul  that  has 
not  become  internally  married  to  the  Lord  by  a  life  of 
obedience  to  his  precepts,  is,  by  its  own  organic  con- 
ditions, without  the  wedding  garment,  and  therefore 
outside  of  the  Kingdom — unclothed  with  celestial  in- 
telligence— in  "  the  outer  darkness." 

And  so  we  might  extend  our  illustrations  through 
many  pages,  showing  again  the  intimate  connection  be- 
tween Swedenborg's  revealings  of  the  spiritual  sense 
of  Scripture,  and  his  disclosures  concerning  the  .spiritual 
world.  And  we  find  a  similar  agreement  throughout 
his  writings.  Can  a  coincidence  so  striking  and  so  often 
repeated,  be  the  result  of  mere  accident?  If  so,  such  a 
marvelous  kind  of  accident  never  occurred  before  or 
since  his  time.  And  if  it  were  an  ingenious  contrivance 
of  the  author,  then  he  (the  man  of  exceptional  honesty, 
simplicity,  and  child-likeness  of  character)  must  be  cred- 
ited with  such  a  degree  of  ingenuity  and  cunning  as  the 
world  never  before  witnessed — yea,  such  as  the  human 
imagination  was  never  capable  of  conceiving.  Only 
things  that  are  divinely  true,  parts  of  the  grand  and 
universal  order  of  God,  ever  fit  into  each  other  in  a 
manner  so  complete  and  perfect. 


GARMENTS  IN  HEAVEN. 


Then  look  at  the  practical  considerations  with  which 
this  disclosure,  like  all  the  others  about  heaven,  is 
fraught.  The  garments  of  the  angels,  like  their  habi- 
tations and  their  whole  environment,  are  indissolubly 
bound  to  themselves  as  effects  to  their  producing  cause. 
The  quality  and  appearance  of  their  dress  are  in  perfect 
correspondence  with  their  states  of  life,  and  change  with 
those  states.  Their  understandings  are  stored  with  the 
beautiful  and  precious  truths  of  heavenly  wisdom.  These 
clothe  and  adorn  their  minds,  and  create  for  themselves, 
by  the  unerring  law  of  correspondence,  garments  of  cor- 
responding worth  and  beauty  visible  to  the  outward  eye. 

And  here,  let  it  be  borne  in  mind  (for  it  is  the  practi- 
cal lesson  to  be  learned  from  this  disclosure),  we  are 
daily  weaving  and  working  for  ourselves  the  garments 
we  shall  wear  in  the  great  Hereafter.  And  we  can  wear 
no  others  than  those  we  make,  as  it  were,  with  our  own 
fingers.  If  we  are  sedulously  imbibing  heavenly  intel- 
ligence, seeking  to  have  our  minds  clothed  and  adorned 
with  the  truths  of  wisdom  from  the  Divine  Word,  as 
only  those  are  who  are  careful  to  live  or  do  the  truths 
they  learn,  then  we  are  weaving  for  our  souls  garments 
of  heavenly  texture  and  brilliancy.  But  if  we  are  re- 
gardless of  the  Divine  precepts,  if  we  fail  to  clothe  our 
minds  with  the  truths  of  wisdom,  as  do  those  who  neg- 
lect to  apply  these  truths  to  life,  then  we  shall  have  no 
garments,  or  none  but  filthy  and  ragged  ones,  in  the 
Hereafter,  to  cover  the  shame  of  our  nakedness.  There- 
fore, saith  the  Lord  :  "  Blessed  is  he  that  watcheth  and 
keepeth  his  garments,  lest  he  walk  naked  and  they  see 
his  shame." 


256 


IJEA  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


XXI. 

CHILDREN  IN  HEA  VEN. 

IT  is  known  that  hundreds  of  thousands  of  little  chil- 
dren are  daily  passing  by  death  from  the  natural 
into  the  spiritual  world.  What  becomes  of  all  this  in- 
fantile host?  In  what  condition  are  they  when  their 
earthly  bodies  are  laid  aside?  Are  they  infants  and 
little  children  still  ?  If  so,  who  has  charge  of  them  ? 
and  what  is  done  for  them  ?  and  what  their  history  and 
final  destiny?  Millions  of  bereaved  parents  are  hourly 
asking  these  questions — mentally  if  not  orally ;  and  it 
would  seem  reasonable  to  expect  that  God,  who  has 
revealed  Himself  as  an  infinitely  wise  and  loving  Father, 
would  some  day  give  an  explicit  answer  to  such  inqui- 
ries. He  has  done  so  through  his  own  chosen  and  illu- 
mined servant.  But  before  giving  the  answer,  the  reader 
should  know  what  the  generally  accepted  belief  on  this 
subject  among  Christians,  was  at  the  time  Swcdenborg 
lived  and  wrote;  for  this  will  show  the  dense  spiritual 
darkness  in  which  the  Christian  church  had  become 
immersed,  and  the  imperative  need  there  was  of  such  a 
new  revelation  as  he  was  divinely  authorized  and  com- 
missioned to  make. 

Many  who  have  not  made  themselves  familiar  with 
the  religious  beliefs  of  a  hundred  years  ago,  will  no 
doubt  be  surprised  to  learn  that  the  cruel  and  worse  than 
heathenish  doctrine  of  i)tfant  damnation,  was  among  the 
then  generally  accepted  beliefs  of  all  the  churches  in 
Christendom.  The  Roman  Catholics  believed  and  taught 


CHILDREN  IN  HEA  VEN. 


257 


that  all  infants  dying  unbaptized,  were  doomed  to  eternal 
hell  torments.  And  all  the  distinguished  lights  (?)  and 
recognized  authorities  in  the  various  Protestant  churches 
— including  Luther,  Melancthon,  Calvin  and  Beza,  and 
many  eminent  professors  of  theology  after  them,  the 
English  and  German  churches,  the  Synod  of  Dort,  and 
the  famous  Westminster  Assembly  of  divines — believed 
that  everlasting  hell  torments  will  be  the  portion  of 
some,  at  least,  who  die  in  infancy  and  childhood.*  This 
belief  is  seen  to  be  one  of  the  legitimate  offspring  of 
the  doctrine  of  unconditional  election  and  reprobation, 
which  was  generally  accepted  by  all  Protestant  churches 
a  hundred  years  ago. 

It  is  needless  to  make  any  comments  on  this  doctrine, 
or  to  attempt  to  prove  its  falsity.  For  in  the  light  of 
to-day — the  dawning  light  of  the  New  Jerusalem  which 
is  being  universally  diffused — every  one  sees  that  it  is 
not  only  false,  but  so  monstrous  and  cruel  that  no  intel- 
ligent and  humane  person  thinks  of  accepting  it.  And 
although  it  may  still  linger  in  some  of  the  creeds,  or  be 
fairly  deducible  from  other  articles  there,  the  staunchest 
Calvinistic  minister  of  to-day  would  hardly  dare  to  pro- 
claim such  a  doctrine  before  an  intelligent  congregation, 
or  even  hint  his  belief  in  it;  or  if  he  should,  he  might 
expect  his  people  would  very  soon  be  on  the  lookout 
for  another  minister.  How  great,  then,  must  have  been 
the  spiritual  darkness  of  the  church,  when  such  a  doc- 
trine could  have  been  generally  accepted  !    And  how 


*  See  the  many  and  high  authorities  on  this  subject  quoted  and  lefLired 
to  ill  Part  I.  of  Beauty  for  Ashes,  by  the  author. 
22*  R 


258 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


great  the  need  of  a  new  and  divinely-authorized  revela- 
tion to  disperse  that  darkness  ! 

Turn,  now,  to  Swedenborg's  disclosure  on  this  sub- 
ject, and  see  how  it  squares  with  the  teachings  of  en- 
lightened reason  and  Holy  Scripture.    He  says: 

"  Some  believe  that  only  the  infants  who  are  born 
within  the  church  go  to  heaven,  but  not  those  born  out 
of  the  church  ;  and  the  reason  they  assign  is,  that  in- 
fants within  the  church  are  baptized,  and  arc  thus  initi- 
ated into  the  faith  of  the  church.  But  they  are  not 
aware  that  no  one  receives  heaven  or  faith  by  baptism, 
for  baptism  is  only  for  a  sign  and  memorial  that  man 
is  to  be  regenerated.  ...  Be  it  known,  therefore,  that 
every  infant,  wheresoever  born — whether  within  the 
church  or  out  of  it,  whether  of  pious  or  impious  parents 
— when  he  dies,  is  received  by  the  Lord,  and  is  educa- 
ted in  heaven.  He  is  tlicrc  instructed  according  to  di- 
vine order,  and  is  imbued  with  affections  of  good,  and 
by  them  with  the  knowledges  of  truth  ;  and  afterwards 
as  he  is  perfected  in  intelligence  and  wisdom,  he  is  in- 
troduced into  heaven  and  becomes  an  angel." — H.  H. 
n.  329. 

We  learn  from  this  that  all  who  die  in  infancy  and 
childhood,  go  directly  to  heaven.  They  are  not  angels, 
however,  immediately  after  their  decease,  for  they  lack 
the  intelligence  and  wisdom  necessary  to  constitute  an 
angel.  They  have  the  same  infantile  mind  which  they 
had  while  yet  in  the  flesh  ;  for  the  death  of  the  body 
works  no  change  in  the  spiritual  organism.  So  long, 
therefore,  as  they  are  without  heavenly  intelligence  and 
wisdom,  they  arc  not  angels,  although  in  the  society  of 
angels. 

"  When  infants  die,  they  are  still  infants  in  the  other 


CHILDREN  IN  HEAVEN. 


259 


life.  They  have  the  same  infantile  mind,  the  same  in- 
nocence in  ignorance,  and  the  same  tenderness  in  all 
things.  They  are  only  in  rudimental  states  introduc- 
tory to  the  angelic — for  infants  are  not  angels.  Every 
one  after  his  decease,  is  in  a  similar  state  of  life  to  that 
in  which  he  was  in  the  world ;  an  infant  in  a  state  of 
infancy,  a  boy  in  a  state  of  boyhood,  a  youth,  a  man, 
an  old  man,  in  the  state  of  youth,  of  a  man,  and  of  an 
old  man ;  but  the  state  of  every  one  is  afterwards 
changed.  The  state  of  infants,  however,  excels  that 
of  all  others  in  this  respect,  that  they  are  in  innocence, 
and  evil  from  actual  life  has  not  yet  taken  root  in  them. 
And  such  is  the  nature  of  innocence,  that  all  things  of 
heaven  may  be  imjilanted  in  it;  for  it  is  the  receptacle 
of  the  truth  of  faith  and  of  the  good  of  love." — H.  H. 
n.  330. 

"As  soon  as  infants  are  raised  from  the  dead,  which 
takes  place  immediately  after  their  decease,  they  are 
taken  into  heaven,  and  committed  to  the  care  of  angels 
of  the  female  sex,  who  in  the  life  of  the  body  loved  lit- 
tle children  tenderly,  and  at  the  same  time  loved  God. 
Because  these  angels  when  in  the  world  loved  all  in- 
fants from  a  sort  of  maternal  tenderness,  they  receive 
them  as  their  own ;  and  the  little  ones  also,  from  an  in- 
clination implanted  in  them,  love  them  as  their  own 
mothers.  Each  one  has  as  many  infants  under  her 
care,  as  she  desires  from  a  spiritual  maternal  affection." 
—Ibid.  n.  332. 

The  condition,  in  the  spiritual  world,  of  those  who  die 
in  infancy  and  childhood,  is  thus  seen  to  be  preferable 
to  that  of  those  who  continue  on  earth.  Their  surround- 
ings are  more  favorable  to  the  growth  of  the  heavenly 
graces.  They  are  in  better  company.  Their  spiritual 
wants  are  more  fully  supplied  ;  for  those  who  have  them 
in  charge  are  wiser  than  the  wisest  mothers  or  nurses 


26o 


JIEAVEN  REVEALED. 


on  earth,  and  love  them  with  a  purer  sph'itual  affection 
— an  affection  that  has  supreme  regard  to  their  eternal 
well-being.  Thus  they  are  kept  under  the  more  imme- 
diate auspices  of  the  Lord,  and  are  freed  from  the  mani- 
fold debasing  influences  that  surround  little  children  in 
this  lower  sphere.  They  inhale  the  healthful  atmosphere 
of  heaven.  No  blasting  mildew — no  foul  breath  from 
hell  falls  upon  them  there.  They  meet  with  no  harsh 
or  unkind  treatment.  So  wisely  are  they  led  and  gov- 
erned, that  their  hereditary  evils  lie  dormant — never  be- 
come actual  sins.  They  witness  in  those  around  them 
no  exhibition  of  evil  feelings,  they  hear  no  profane  or 
angry  words,  they  look  upon  no  wicked  deeds.  Love 
prompts  and  wisdom  directs  whatever  is  done  to  them 
and  for  them.  Love  breathes  in  every  tone  they  hear; 
love  beams  in  every  face  they  see  ;  love  moulds  the  forms 
and  prompts  the  words  and  shapes  the  deeds  of  all  around 
them.  Even  the  gardens,  trees  and  flowers,  and  all  the 
beautiful  objects  that  greet  their  senses,  are  but  the 
visible  and  substantial  forms  of  the  angelic  thoughts  and 
affections  which  are  poured  forth  in  a  fresh  and  ever- 
living  stream  into  their  open  and  receptive  souls. 

They  are  educated,  too,  in  a  far  wiser  manner  than 
children  on  earth.  They  are  instructed  for  the  most 
part  by  representatives  which  are  surpassingly  beautiful 
and  fraught  with  angelic  wisdom.  Objects  which  delight 
them  exceedingly — all  of  which  are  correspondences  re- 
plete with  instruction  suited  to  their  states — are  presented 
before  them,  and  their  signification  fully  explained ;  and 
thus  their  minds  are  gradually  opened,  and  they  are  led 
on  by  their  angel  teachers  to  the  fulness  of  angelic  wis- 


CHILDREN  IN  HE  A  VEN. 


dom,  more  rapidly  and  more  pleasantly  than  children 
under  even  the  very  best  instruction  in  this  world.  No 
compulsory  processes  are  resorted  to,  but  they  are  led 
by  their  afifections  ;  for  the  angels  know  how  to  insinuate 
heavenly  intelligence  into  the  minds  of  little  children  by 
means  of  objects  which  address  and  delight  their  senses. 
Describing  the  manner  in  which  children  are  educated 
in  heaven,  Swedenborg  says  : 

"  Into  their  affections  which  all  proceed  from  inno- 
cence, are  insinuated  such  things  as  appear  before  their 
eyes,  and  are  delightful.  And  as  these  are  from  a  spir- 
itual origin,  the  things  of  heaven  flow  into  them  at  the 
same  time ;  and  thus  their  interiors  are  opened,  and  they 
become  more  perfect  every  day." 

"  Little  children  in  heaven  are  instructed  principally 
by  representatives  suited  to  their  capacities,  which,  in 
beauty  and  fulness  of  wisdom  derived  from  an  interior 
ground,  surpass  all  belief  Thus  intelligence  which  de- 
rives its  soul  from  good,  is  insinuated  into  them  by  de- 
grees."—H.  H.  n.  337,  '8. 

And  this,  remember,  was  written  more  than  twenty 
years  before  Froebel,  the  founder  of  the  new  method  of 
educating  little  children  known  as  the  Kindergarten  S3's- 
tem,  was  born.  Yet  the  latter  system  is  a  faithful  imi- 
tation of  the  method  pursued  in  heaven,  as  revealed 
through  Swedenborg  a  hundred  and  thirty  years  ago. 

But  those  who  pass  into  the  spiritual  world  during  in- 
fancy or  childhood,  do  not  remain  infants  and  children. 
They  advance  there  as  here  to  the  full  stature  of  man- 
hood. They  grow  by  the  assimilation  or  accretion  of 
the  substances  of  the  spiritual  world,  as  children  on  earth 
grow  by  the  assimilation  of  material  substance.  The 


262 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


body  in  each  world  is  formed  of  substances  homogeneous 
in  their  nature  with  its  respective  world.  But  they  do 
not  grow  old  there  as  here.  They  do  not  advance  (in 
appearance)  beyond  the  age  of  early  manhood  and 
womanhood,  but  retain  forever  the  freshness  and  vigor 
of  that  early  period.  (See  p.  227  for  further  remarks  on 
this  subject.) 

But  all  children  are  born  into  this  world  with  a  cer- 
tain hereditary  evil  taint.  They  inherit  from  foregone 
ancestry  proclivities  which,  in  their  full  development, 
incline  them  to  all  kinds  of  evil.  This  is  what  Sweden- 
borg  calls  the  natural  or  hereditary  proprunu,  which  he 
says  is  altogether  infernal,  and  within  or  above  which 
every  regenerate  soul  receives  from  the  Lord  a  new  and 
heavenly  proprium.  This  is  what  constitutes  the  new 
man — the  new  creature — the  new  birth  from  Above. 
And  do  not  those  who  die  in  infancy,  it  may  be  asked, 
take  with  them  this  natural  proprium  ?  If  so,  what  be- 
comes of  it?  Does  it  never  manifest  itself  in  the  world 
beyond  ?  And  if  it  does,  how  are  their  hereditary  ten- 
dencies to  evil  to  be  overcome  or  got  rid  of? 

It  is  true  that  children  take  with  them  into  the  other 
world  all  the  evil  proclivities  with  which  they  are  born 
into  this  world.  But  their  evils  are  never  aroused  or 
called  into  activity  there,  and  are  therefore  never  appro- 
priated ;  that  is,  they  never  become  their  oivii  by  actual 
life.  Their  perverse  tendencies  gradually  lose  their 
strength  by  not  being  brought  into  exercise ;  for  what- 
ever is  endowed  with  life,  loses  its  vital  force  in  the  de- 
gree that  exercise  is  denied  it.  This  is  a  universal  law. 
Every  mental  faculty  and  disposition  as  well  as  every 


CHILDREN  IN  HEAVEN. 


263 


bodily  organ,  acquires  strength  by  habitual  exercise,  and 
loses  it  by  long-continued  rest.  So  with  the  hereditary 
evils  of  children  in  the  other  world ;  they  remain  qui- 
escent, and  never  become  actual  sins  by  being  ultimated. 
And  the  principal  reason  is,  that  they  are  so  wisely  gov- 
erned that  their  evil  proclivities  are  never  aroused.  The 
sphere  of  love  and  wisdom  by  which  they  are  continu- 
ally encompassed,  exerts  a  restraining  influence  on  their 
evil  tendencies,  while  it  quickens  into  life  and  action 
every  innocent  affection ;  and  so  their  hereditary  evils 
are  kept  in  a  quiescent  state.  But  in  order  to  convince 
them  what  they  are  by  inheritance,  and  to  induce  in 
them  a  becoming  humility,  they  are  at  times  remitted 
into  their  natural  proprium,  and  kept  in  it  until  they  see 
and  acknowledge  their  hereditary  evil  tendencies.  Says 
Swedenborg : 

"  I  have  conversed  with  angels  concerning  infants,  and 
inquired  whether  they  are  free  from  evils,  because  they 
have  no  actual  evil,  like  adults.  Rut  I  was  told  that 
they  are  equally  in  evil, — yea,  that  they,  too,  are  nothing 
but  evil;  but  that  they,  like  all  the  angels,  are  withheld 
from  evil  and  held  in  good  by  the  Lord,  j  et  in  such  a 
way  that  it  appears  to  them  as  if  they  were  in  good  of 
themselves.  Lest,  therefore,  infants  who  have  grown 
up  in  heaven  should  entertain  a  false  opinion  of  them- 
selves, and  imagine  that  the  good  which  they  possess 
is  from  themselves  and  not  from  the  Lord,  they  are 
sometimes  let  into  the  evils  which  they  have  received 
hereditarih',  and  are  left  in  them  until  they  know,  ac- 
knowledge and  believe  that  their  good  is  all  from  the 
Lord." — H.  H.  n.  342. 

All,  we  think,  will  admit  the  reasonableness  of  the 
great  seer's  disclosures  on  the  whole  subject  under  con- 


264 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


sideration.  Some  say  they  are  too  beautiful  to  be  true. 
Too  beautiful  to  be  true  !  Is  anything  too  beautiful  or  too 
good  for  the  Lord  to  do  ?  Is  not  He  the  very  perfec- 
tion of  all  beauty  and  all  goodness  ?  Did  He  not  create 
man  for  heaven,  and  is  it  not  his  constant  effort  to  bring 
all  into  the  heavenly  state  ?  What  is  there,  then,  in  the 
nature  of  the  case,  in  the  revealed  character  of  God,  in 
the  laws  of  Divine  Providence,  or  in  the  state  of  little 
children  themselves,  to  prevent  their  lot  in  the  other 
world  from  being  precisely  as  Swedenborg  has  revealed 
it?  Nay,  is  not  the  Lord's  infinite  mercy  a  sure  pledge 
that  such  and  so  blessed  will  be  their  condition?  And 
does  not  his  Word  give  assurance  of  the  same  ?  What 
affecting  tenderness  and  love  for  little  children  did  the 
Saviour  exhibit,  when  He  called  them  to  Him,  put  his 
hands  upon  them  and  blessed  them !  And  how  plainly 
did  He  declare  their  fitness  for  the  realms  above,  when 
He  said :  "  Suffer  the  little  children  to  come  unto  me, 
and  forbid  them  not,  for  of  such  is  the  kingdom  of 
heaven"  (Matt.  xix.  14).  Again,  when  He  set  a  little 
child  in  the  midst  of  the  disciples,  saying :  "  Verily  I 
say  unto  you,  except  ye  be  converted  and  become  as 
little  children,  ye  shall  not  enter  into  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  "  (lb.  xviii.  3).  And  again  when  He  said  :  "  For 
I  say  unto  you  that  their  angels  in  the  heavens  do  always 
behold  the  face  of  my  Father  which  is  in  the  heavens  " 
(Ibid.  v.  10). 

It  thus  appears  that  Swedenborg's  disclosures  on  this 
subject  have  the  support  of  sacred  Scripture  as  well  as 
of  sound  and  enlightened  reason. 

Then  try  them  by  that  sure  and  infallible  test  which 


CHILDREN  IN  HEAVEN. 


265 


infinite  Wisdom  has  suggested — by  their  fruits.  We 
know,  or  can  readily  infer,  the  inevitable  effect  of  the 
Old  doctrine  on  the  minds  of  its  believers.  We  know 
that  it  contains  no  solace  for  bereaved  parents  when 
death  has  snatched  some  little  one  from  their  embrace. 
It  cannot  suppress  one  sigh,  nor  mitigate  one  pang,  nor 
minister  one  drop  of  comfort  to  their  stricken  hearts. 
Nay,  the  thought  which  it  suggests  of  the  bare  possibil- 
ity that  their  darling  may  be  counted  among  the  repro- 
bates— forever  doomed  to  the  torments  of  the  damned 
— is  calculated  to  wring  their  souls  with  indescribable 
anguish.  And  what  a  reproach  does  the  Old  doctrine 
cast  upon  the  character  of  the  infinitely  wise  and  lov- 
ing Father!  What  a  monster  of  injustice  and  cruelty 
does  it  make  Him  ! 

But  the  New  doctrine  as  revealed  through  Sweden- 
borg,  while  it  accords  with  reason  and  Scripture  and 
the  unspeakable  love  and  wisdom  of  God,  is  full  of 
heavenly  consolation  for  bereaved  parents.  It  assures 
that  weeping  mother  as  she  bends  for  the  last  time  over 
the  pulseless  body  of  her  darling  child,  that  her  pre- 
cious one  is  still  alive — brighter  and  happier,  too,  than 
ever  before ;  that  it  has  gone  from  the  cold,  dull  earth 
to  the  warm,  bright  heavens ;  that  it  is  already  in  the 
tender  embrace  of  loving  angels,  and  in  due  time  will 
itself  become  an  angel ;  that  as  soon  as  it  left  its  earthly 
tenement  and  its  eyes  opened  on  the  spiritual  world,  it 
beheld  an  angel  mother  smiling  on  it,  and  eager  to  fold 
it  in  her  loving  arms;  that  there  this  angel  mother  will 
love  and  tend  it,  and  angel  teachers  instruct  and  guide 
it;  that  there  it  will  play  with  other  children  who  are 
23 


266 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


all  learning  to  be  good  and  wise ;  that  there  it  will  feel 
no  pain,  and  know  no  sorrow,  and  experience  no  want; 
that  there,  enveloped  in  an  atmosphere  of  sweetest  love, 
it  will  be  forever  shielded  from  all  baleful  influences, 
and  never  know  the  polluting  touch  of  sin  ;  that  every- 
thing which  greets  its  senses  there,  will  be  full  of  in- 
struction and  delight ;  that  its  eye  will  behold  none  but 
beautiful  objects,  and  its  ear  listen  only  to  love's  sweet 
notes. 

And  let  that  mother  believe  all  this,  as  she  surely 
will  if  she  studies  the  revealings  which  it  has  pleased 
the  Lord  to  make,  and  will  she  not  derive  support  and 
comfort  from  it?  Will  she  not  find  in  it  a  balm  for  her 
wounded  spirit?  Will  it  not  give  her  beauty  for  ashes, 
the  oil  of  joy  for  mourning,  the  garment  of  praise  for 
the  spirit  of  heaviness  ?  Will  she  not  dry  her  tears, 
suppress  her  sighs,  chide  her  murmurs,  and  with  hum- 
ble, cheerful  trust  look  up,  and  say  from  the  heart, 
"  The  Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  hath  taken  away ; 
blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Lord." 

Nor  is  the  instruction  which  this  new  revelation  im- 
parts, less  important  than  the  comfort  it  affords.  Not 
only  does  it  enable  us  to  give  up  our  little  ones  with 
more  resigned  and  cheerful  hearts  at  the  call  of  the 
Heavenly  Father,  but  it  presses  upon  us  the  importance 
of  governing  and  instructing  them  aright  while  they 
remain  with  us.  It  shows  us  that,  if  we  would  train 
our  cliiUlren  for  heaven,  we  must  endeavor  to  become 
heavenly-minded  ourselves.  We  must  have  our  affec- 
tions so  fixed  on  heavenly  things,  that  the  love  of 
heaven  will  shine  out  in  our  looks,  tones,  words  and 


CHILDREiY  IN  HE  A  VEN. 


267 


actions ;  for  then  we  shall  be  able  to  lead  our  children 
by  their  affections,  as  the  angels  do.  We  must  en- 
deavor to  shield  them  against  all  corrupting  influences, 
and  to  surround  them  by  such  a  sAveet  and  heavenly 
atmosphere  as  will  strengthen  all  their  good  affections 
and  stifle  all  the  bad. 

Such  is  the  instruction  which  the  new  revelation  on 
this  subject  suggests  and  emphasizes,  by  showing  us  in 
what  vvay  children  are  trained  in  heaven,  and  the  happy 
results  thereby  attained.  It  shows  us  how  the  growth 
of  their  hereditary  evils  may  be  checked,  and  thus  pre- 
vented from  becoming  actual  sins.  And  how  it  enforces 
the  duty  of  striving  to  make  the  home  of  our  children 
a  little  heaven  on  earth !  How  it  entreats  us  to  suffer 
nothing  "that  defileth  orworketh  abomination  or  maketh 
a  lie,"  ever  to  enter  there  !  It  tells  us  as  in  loud  trumpet- 
tones, that  all  harsh  and  uncharitable  judgments,  all  angry 
looks,  resentful  feelings  and  evil  speaking,  all  impatience, 
discontent,  discord  and  moroseness  should  be  banished 
thence  as  soul-destroying  fiends; — that  the  domestic 
altar  should  be  shielded  from  every  taint  of  sin  as  from 
a  wasting  pestilence, — swept  clean  of  evil  thoughts  and 
words  as  of  the  seeds  of  death ; — that  it  should  be 
guarded  and  kept  as  the  Holy  of  Holies  where  resteth 
the  ark  of  God's  covenant,  where  truth  and  purity  and 
peace  go  hand  in  hand,  and  all  are  encircled  with  religion 
and  love  as  with  beautiful  shining  robes. 

See  how  the  Old  and  the  New  doctrine  on  this  subject 
appear,  when  placed  side  by  side  !  Look  at  them  in  the 
light  of  Scripture  and  reason  and  the  revealed  character 
of  the  Heavenly  Father.    Which  has  the  stamp  of  truth 


268 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


most  legibly  imprinted  on  it  ?  Which  looks  like  the 
offspring  of  Divine  Wisdom,  and  which  like  the  work 
of  men's  hands  ?  Do  not  the  character  and  obvious 
tendency  of  the  New  revcalings,  clearly  authenticate 
their  heavenly  origin  ? 


XXII. 

SEX  AND  MARRIAGE  IN  HEAVEN. 

AMONG  all  of  Swedenborg's voluminous  works,  there 
is  not  one  which  proves  more  conclusively  his  Di- 
vine illumination,  than  his  treatise  on  Conjugial  Love. 
Had  any  man  written  that  book  without  having  his  mind 
opened  to  the  light  of  heaven  in  an  unusual  degree,  it 
would  have  been  the  miracle  of  miracles.  Isi  no  other 
work  ever  published  can  there  be  found  such  exalted 
wisdom  touching  the  character  and  relation  of  the  sexes. 
In  no  other  has  the  subject  of  marriage  been  discussed 
so  profoundly,  or  its  true  nature  and  origin  been  unfolded 
so  clearly,  or  so  just  and  elevated  views  of  it  been  pre- 
sented— views  calculated  to  produce  such  a  deep  con- 
viction of  the  sacredness  of  this  relation.  We  cannot 
conceive  how  a  tolerably  fair  mind  can  read  this  work 
understandingly,  without  being  made  purer,  wiser  and 
better  by  it ;  nay,  without  being  convinced  that  the  truths 
here  unfolded  are  such  as  no  human  mind  could  ever 
have  reached  by  it^  own  unaided  efforts. 

Hitherto  the  proper  relation  of  the  sexes  has  been  but 
imperfectly  understood ;  and  even  professing  Christians 


SEX  A. YD  MARRIAGE  IN  HEAVEN.  269 


have  entertained  extremely  low,  not  to  say  false,  ideas 
of  the  whole  subject  of  marriage.  They  have  generally 
looked  upon  it  as  a  union  of  bodies  rather  than  of  souls; 
and  regarded  it,  therefore,  as  a  relation  belonging  ex- 
clusively to  the  natural  world — rejecting,  and  sometimes 
scouting,  the  idea  of  anything  like  marriage  in  the  great 
Hereafter.  The  moment  a  spiritual  idea  is  admitted  into 
the  thought  respecting  marriage,  and  anything  like  a 
union  of  souls  is  conceded  to  be  possible,  that  moment 
it  is  seen  that  the  marriage  relation  must  exist  in  the 
world  beyond,  or  wherever  souls  exist. 

On  account  of  the  low  and  merely  natural  view  of 
marriage  which  has  been  generally  held  and  taught, 
people  have  entered  into  this  relation  from  low  and 
earthly  motives  ;  and  innumerable  evils  have  been  the 
result.  And  before  the  evils  resulting  from  a  low  and 
false  view  of  marriage  can  be  avoided,  people  must  ob- 
tain a  higher  and  truer  view  of  it.  The  men  and  women 
of  Christendom  need  to  have  their  ideas  on  this  subject 
elevated  and  spiritualized.  They  need  to  have  the  insti- 
tution lifted  up  from  the  earth,  to  be  shown  the  spiritual 
nature  of  the  marriage  relation,  the  spiritual  uses  it  was 
meant  to  subserve,  and  the  spiritual  considerations  from 
which  it  should  be  entered  into,  if  they  would  realize 
the  blessings  it  was  meant  to  confer.  There  is  no  deeper 
need  of  Christendom  to-day,  however  little  it  may  gen- 
erally be  felt.  And  it  was  to  satisfy  this  need,  that  the 
Lord  has  revealed  through  Swedenborg  the  heavenly 
doctrine  concerning  marriage,  or  the  view  which  the 
angels  take  of  this  relation.  And  as  the  love  from 
which  marriages  in  heaven  spring,  is  the  foundation  or 
23* 


270 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


parent  of  all  other  heavenly  loves,  so  the  nearer  mar- 
riages on  earth  approach  in  their  nature  to  those  in 
heaven,  the  more  of  heaven  will  there  be  in  the  hearts 
of  men  ; — the  more  fully  will  the  Lord's  kingdom  come 
and  his  will  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is  done  in  the  heavens. 

But  are  there  really  marriages  in  heaven?  We  will 
first  hear  Swedcnborg's  answer  to  this  question,  and 
then  subject  it  to  a  careful  examination  in  the  light  of 
reason  and  known  facts ;  and  finally,  will  explain  the 
passage  of  Scripture  which  is  commonly  supposed  to 
teach  a  different  doctrine  on  the  subject. 

"  Heaven  is  from  the  human  race ;  therefore  the  angels 
of  heaven  are  of  both  sexes.  And  because  it  was  or- 
dained from  creation  that  the  woman  should  be  for  the 
man  and  the  man  for  the  woman,  and  thus  that  each 
should  be  the  other's,  and  because  this  love  is  innate  in 
both,  it  follows  that  there  are  marriages  in  heaven  as 
well  as  on  earth.  But  marriages  in  heaven  are  very 
different  from  those  on  earth. 

"  Marriage  in  heaven  is  the  uniting  of  two  into  one 
mind.  The  mind  consists  of  two  parts,  one  of  which 
is  called  the  understanding,  the  other  the  will.  When 
these  two  parts  act  in  unity,  they  are  then  called  one 
mind.  In  heaven  the  husband  acts  that  part  which  is 
called  the  understanding,  and  the  wife  that  which  is 
called  the  will.  When  this  union  which  is  of  the  inte- 
riors, descends  into  the  inferiors  which  are  of  the  body, 
it  is  perceived  and  felt  as  love.  This  love  is  conjugial 
love. 

"  Hence  it  is  evident  that  conjugial  love  derives  its 
origin  from  the  union  of  two  into  one  mind.  This  is 
called  in  heaven  cohabitation;  and  it  is  said  that  they 
arc  not  two  but  one.  Therefore  two  married  partners 
in  heaven  are  not  called  two  but  one  angel." — H.  H.  n, 
366,  '7. 


SEX  AND  MARRIAGE  IN  HEAVEN. 


271 


The  fundamental  question  to  be  first  considered,  is, 
whether  the  distinction  of  sex  is  preserved  in  the  other 
world.  Does  a  man  remain  a  man  and  a  woman  remain 
a  woman  in  the  Hereafter  ?  Or  do  they  exchange  gen- 
ders, or  all  become  of  the  neuter  gender?  The  verdict 
of  enlightened  reason  on  this,  as  on  other  subjects,  is 
clearly  in  agreement  with  Swedenborg's  teaching.  To 
suppose  people  to  be  of  a  different  gender  in  the  other 
world  from  what  they  were  in  this,  were  preposterous 
in  the  extreme.  The  preservation  of  one's  sex  is  essen- 
tial to  the  maintenance  of  his  identity.  If  it  were  pos- 
sible to  change  one's  sex,  the  moment  the  change  was 
effected  he  would  cease  to  be  the  same  person. 

It  is  man's  soul  or  spirit  that  is  immortal.  This,  as 
we  have  repeatedly  said,  is  the  real  man.  And  when 
the  spirit  leaves  the  body,  it  remains  unchanged.  It 
takes  with  it  all  its  God-given  instincts — all  its  innate 
affections,  tendencies,  wants  and  appetencies.  The  dif- 
ference between  man  and  woman  in  their  physical  struc- 
ture, is  apparent  to  all.  The  latter  is  usually  smaller, 
weaker,  of  more  delicate  features,  softer  skin,  and  fairer 
complexion  than  the  former.  They  differ,  too,  in  their 
manners,  gestures  and  tones  of  voice.  Yet  even  as  to 
their  bodies  it  is  plain  they  were  made  for  each  other, — 
that  they  belong  together,  and  are  parts  of  one  and  the 
same  whole.  So  that,  physically  regarded,  neither  is 
complete  without  the  other,  because  incapable  of  fulfill- 
ing all  the  ends  of  his  earthly  existence.  The  Creator's 
design  is  plainly  written  upon  their  physical  organism, 
which  is,  that  each  is  for  the  other — each  but  a  part  of 
a  perfect  whole. 


272 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


But  the  body  is  only  the  manifested  form  of  the  soul 
or  spirit  within  it.  It  therefore  corresponds  to  the  soul 
in  every  particular,  being  perfectly  adapted  to  all  its 
wants  and  capabilities.  It  thence  follows  that  there  must 
be  a  difference  between  the  souls  of  the  two  sexes  cor- 
responding precisely  to  that  between  their  bodies.  For 
the  logical  inference  from  the  great  doctrine  of  corre- 
spondence is,  that  the  masculine  body  must  correspond 
to  the  masculine  soul  and  the  feminine  body  to  the  fem- 
inine soul. 

And  as  a  matter  of  fact,  we  find  it  is  so.  No  truth  is 
more  obvious  than  this  :  that  there  exists  an  innate  dif- 
ference in  the  mental  constitution  of  the  sexes,  just  as 
wide  and  as  strongly  marked  as  that  observable  in  their 
physical  organism.  Their  souls  differ  precisely  as  do 
their  bodies.  For  although  we  sometimes  meet  with 
manish  women  and  womanish  men,  they  are  the  excep- 
tions and  not  the  rule.  We  find  them  mentally  no  oft- 
ener  than  physically  so.  In  general  the  feminine  soul 
differs  from  the  masculine,  as  woman's  body  differs  from 
man's.  But  one  is  not  superior  io  the  other;  only  they 
are  different.  There  would  be  as  little  propriety  in 
speaking  of  the  mental  superiority  of  man  to  woman  or 
of  woman  to  man,  as  there  would  be  in  speaking  of  the 
physical  superiority  of  the  heart  to  the  lungs  or  the 
lungs  to  the  heart.  The  truth  is  they  belong  together, 
and  are  adapted  to  each  other  in  their  whole  constitu- 
tion, mental  and  physical.  One  is  the  complement  of 
the  other.  When  "  they  twain  arc  one  flesh,"  the  man 
is  complete — a  whole  man.  Hence  we  read  in  Genesis 
that  God  created  man  in  his  own  image ;  "  male  and 


SEX  AND  MARRIAGE  LV  HEAVEN: 


female  created  He  them,  and  blessed  them,  and  called 
their  name  Adam,"  that  is,  nimi — for  this  is  what  Adam 
in  the  Hebrew  means.  Accordingly  Swedcnborg  says, 
that  "  in  heaven  two  married  partners  are  not  called  two 
but  one  angel." — H.  H.  n.  367. 

Spiritually  viewed,  then,  man  and  woman  differ  as  do 
the  will  and  understanding,  or  the  heart  and  lungs,  and 
are  similarly  adapted  each  to  the  other.  The  masculine 
soul  is  preeminently  intellectual,  and  the  feminine  pre- 
eminently em.otional.  Or  in  other  words,  man  is  born 
into  the  affection  of  knowing,  understanding  and  being 
wise;  and  woman  into  the  love  of  man's  wisdom,  not 
in  herself  but  in  the  man,  and  consequently  into  the  love 
of  conjoining  herself  with  the  intellect  or  wisdom  of  the 
man.    Accordingly  Swedenborg  says  : 

"  The  woman  feels  the  delights  of  her  love  in  the 
wisdom  of  the  man,  because  this  is  its  receptacle ;  and 
when  love  finds  this  receptacle  corresponding  to  itself, 
it  is  in  its  enjoyments  and  delights." — C.  L.  n.  189. 

And  precisely  this  difference  in  their  mental  consti- 
tution, is  indicated  by  the  physical  structure  or  form  of 
man  and  woman  respectively.  For  the  masculine  form 
— being  coarser,  stronger,  and  more  angular — is  a  form 
of  the  intellect ;  and  the  feminine  form — being  fairer, 
more  delicate  and  beautiful — is  a  form  of  affection.  Not 
that  man  is  wholly  destitute  of  affection,  and  woman  of 
intellect;  but  viewed  in  relation  to  each  other,  their 
minds  are  thus  characterized — man  being  preeminently 
intellectual,  and  woman  preeminently  emotional  or  af- 
fectional.  Love  is  the  native  element  of  woman's  soul, 
as  truth  is  that  of  man's.  And  so  the  sexes  stand  re- 
S 


274 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


lated  like  love  and  wisdom,  will  and  understanding,  or 
heart  and  lungs.  And  their  mental  difference  is  not 
the  result  of  education  or  circumstances.  It  is  inborn. 
It  exists  from  their  very  creation.  It  belongs  to  their 
soul's  constitution,  and  must  therefore  continue  while 
the  soul  endures. 

Now,  the  sexes  being  thus  constituted,  mutually  de- 
sire conjunction  with  each  other.  The  masculine  soul 
instinctively  yearns  for  union  with  some  feminine  soul, 
and  the  feminine  for  union  with  some  masculine.  And 
until  this  union  is  attained,  each  is  conscious  of  an  un- 
satisfied want ;  each  has  a  sense  of  incompleteness — 
feels  a  lack  of  wholeness  to  his  being.  And  the  reason 
is,  that  the  Creator  has  so  constituted  the  human  soul 
that  no  single  one  is  complete  or  whole  in  itself,  but 
only  in  union  with  another. 

And  because  of  this  inborn  constitution  of  the  sexes, 
and  because  every  soul  takes  with  it  into  the  other 
world  all  its  innate  characteristics,  wants  and  appe- 
tencies, therefore  man  and  woman  must  mutually  desire 
to  be  joined  in  marriage  in  the  great  Hereafter,  and 
marriages  must  exist  in  heaven.  For  the  angels  being 
of  both  sexes,  and  endowed  with  an  ardent  longing  for 
union  with  each  other,  would  be  unhappy  if  such  union 
were  denied  them.  And  as  the  conjunctive  tendency 
was  implanted  in  the  sexes  by  God  himself,  it  would 
be  most  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  its  gratification 
would  be  denied  in  that  highest  state  to  which  human 
beings  are  made  capable  of  attaining  —  that  is,  in 
heaven. 

Besides,  the  masculine  and  feminine  soul  being  com- 


SEX  AND  MARRIAGE  IN  HEAVEN. 


275 


plements  of  each  other,  belong  together  from  creation. 
Neither  is  complete  by  itself  alone,  but  only  in  mar- 
riage union  with  its  other  half ;  just  as  neither  lungs 
nor  heart  can  perform  its  appropriate  function  except  in 
organic  union  with  the  other.  Marriages  in  heaven  are, 
therefore,  necessary  to  the  completeness  of  the  angels. 
No  single  angel  would  be  a  zuhole  angel,  without  union 
with  some  other  that  is  the  complement  of  himself. 
And  as  everything  in  heaven  is  more  perfect  than  on 
earth — the  states  of  the  angels,  also,  more  innocent, 
pure  and  exalted  than  those  of  men — therefore  we 
should  expect  the  conjugial  principle  would  exist  there 
in  greater  strength  and  purity  than  on  earth,  and  the 
marriage  relation  be  found  in  its  highest  perfection. 
The  heavenly  life  being  the  highest  life,  where  but  in 
heaven  should  we  look  for  the  best  illustration  of  the 
truly  conjugial  affection  and  relation?  Where  else 
should  we  expect  to  find  marriages  so  blissful  or  so 
perfect  ? 

We  have  said  that  man  and  woman,  like  the  lungs 
and  heart,  belong  together  as  parts  of  one  and  the  same 
whole.  But  as  no  two  hearts  and  no  two  lungs  are 
ever  precisely  alike,  so  no  two  hearts  can  ever  be  ex- 
actly suited  to  one  and  the  same  pair  of  lungs.  It  fol- 
lows, therefore,  that  only  one  man  and  one  woman  can, 
from  creation,  be  perfectly  adapted  to  each  other  as 
parts  of  one  and  the  same  whole.  Hence  "the  Lord 
provides  that  conjugial  pairs  shall  be  born."  (C.  L.  229.) 
Hence  a  true  marriage — such  a  union  of  souls  as  exists 
in  heaven— can  take  place  only  between  two  individuals 
who  were  created  for  each  other. 


276 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


That  there  are  marriages  in  heaven  may  further  ap- 
pear, if  we  consider  the  highest  use  of  marriage  here 
on  earth.  Its  first  use,  Hke  the  first  use  of  houses,  gar- 
ments and  all  material  things,  is  natural  and  temporal. 
But  its  principal  and  highest  use  is  spiritual  and  eternal. 
This  is  obvious  from  the  fact,  that  the  most  unhappy 
marriages  are  those  where  there  is  the  least  spiritual 
afifinity  between  the  parties — the  least  approach  to  a 
union  of  souls ;  and  where  the  deepest  want  of  the 
spirit  in  this  relation,  therefore,  is  not  met.  Outward 
circumstances  may  be  of  regal  splendor;  honor,  wealth 
and  station  may  crown  the  wedded  pair;  but  if  there 
be  no  internal  and  spiritual  union,  the  bonds  of  external 
marriage  will  be  felt  as  a  heavy  burden  grievous  to  be 
borne — all  the  heavier  and  more  grievous,  perhaps,  for 
the  splendor  of  the  outward  life.  Neither  of  the  parties 
knowing  aught  of  the  sweet  peace  and  comfort  of  love, 
they  will  feel  no  support  from,  and  no  joy  or  delight  in, 
each  other.  On  the  contrary,  they  will  both  feel  an  un- 
satisfied want,  a  corroding  canker,  a  gnawing  worm,  a 
wasting  consumption  at  the  heart;  and  nothing  but  a 
firm  faith  and  well-grounded  religious  principle,  will 
prevent  them  from  fretting  life  away  in  anxious  longing 
for  a  more  congenial  mate. 

So  deeply  and  so  obviously  is  man's  immortal  part 
involved  in  this  sacred  relation  !  So  much  does  the  soul 
demand  for  itself  in  the  marriage  relation  even  on  earth  ! 
And  so  greatly  does  it  suffer,  too,  when  defrauded  of  its 
just  demands!  And  so  egregiously  do  those  parents 
err,  and  such  a  fearful  weight  of  responsibility  do  they 
assume,  who  undertake  to  decide  for  their  sons  and 


SEX  AND  MARRIAGE  IN  HEAVEN. 


277 


daughters  what  sort  of  conjugal  alliances  they  shall 
form  !  And  what  a  terrible  mistake  do  the  parties  them- 
selves commit,  who,  when  about  to  enter  into  this  rela- 
tion, make  mere  external  and  worldly  considerations 
rather  than  the  deep  and  enduring  wants  of  the  soul,  the 
basis  of  their  choice  ! 

Clearly,  then,  do  marriages  here  on  earth,  be  they 
fortunate  or  unfortunate,  prove  that  the  soul  is  deeply  in- 
volved in  this  relation  ; — that  it  has  a  want  herein  which 
nothing  else  but  union  with  some  kindred  soul  can  fully 
satisfy.  And  because  it  is  a  soul's  want,  it  must  endure 
so  long  as  the  soul  endures ;  and  in  heaven,  therefore, 
it  cannot  fail  of  its  full  gratification. 

Observe,  further,  the  spiritual  uses  of  marriage  on 
earth,  in  the  connate  character  and  obvious  mental  needs 
of  the  two  sexes.  Man  is  preeminently  a  form  of  the 
intellect,  and  in  mind  as  well  as  body,  is  comparatively 
coarse,  harsh,  severe  and  angular.  Alone,  or  disjoined 
from  woman,  he  is  like  faith  separate  from  charity,  or 
truth  apart  from  good,  which  Swedenborg  says  is  repre- 
sented in  the  spiritual  world  as  something  strong,  pow- 
erful, hard  and  irresistible,  at  the  sight  of  which  good 
spirits  are  terrified.  He,  therefore,  needs  the  softening, 
refining,  mellowing  influence  of  woman's  gentler  heart, 
precisely  as  truth  or  faith  needs  the  softening  and  sweet- 
ening influence  of  charity.  And  woman  being  pre- 
eminently a  form  of  affection,  is  comparatively  weak, 
tender  and  delicate  in  mind  as  well  as  in  body.  Alone, 
or  apart  from  man,  she  is  like  charity  separate  from  faith, 
or  like  love  without  wisdom.  She,  therefore,  needs  the 
strengthening,  supporting,  guiding  influence  of  man's 
24 


278 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


intellect.  Man's  intellect  alone  is  cold — like  the  clear 
cold  light  of  winter ;  it  needs  the  warmth  of  woman's 
love  to  quicken  in  him  the  seeds  of  thought.  And  wo- 
man's heart  alone  is  warm — like  the  warmth  of  a  dark- 
ened chamber;  it  needs  the  light  of  man's  intellect  to 
enable  it  to  impart  health,  strength  and  verdure. 

And  thus  the  soul  of  each  is  perfected  by  union  with 
the  other.  Man's  head  is  warmed  by  woman's  heart — 
his  harsh,  stern  features  rounded  and  made  beautiful  by 
woman's  love.  And  woman's  heart  is  enlightened  by 
man's  head — her  tender  and  delicate  soul  supported  and 
made  strong  by  the  strength  of  man's  intellect.  Thus 
the  two  whom  God  has  joined  together — whose  souls 
He  has  so  constituted  that  they  are  "  no  more  twain  but 
one  flesh  " — are  made  all  the  more  perfect,  more  human, 
more  truly  and  completely  one,  by  the  union  we  call 
marriage.  "  Male  and  female  created  He  them,  and 
called  their  name  Adam." 

Now  if — as  the  old  theologies  have  taught — there  are 
no  marriages  in  heaven,  either  the  angels  must  be  less 
perfect  than  they  would  be  with  marriages,  or  the  dis- 
tinguishing mental  characteristics  of  the  sexes  must  be 
so  entirely  changed  there,  that  each  will  be  whole  by 
himself  alone,  and  will  have  no  need  of  conjunction  with 
the  other. 

And  how  clearly  and  impressively  are  the  spiritual 
uses  of  marriage  sometimes  revealed  here  on  earth  ! — 
A  fond  and  devoted  wife  sees  the  partner  of  her  bosom 
pursuing  a  downward  and  criminal  course — plunging 
deeper  and  deeper  into  vice  and  infamy — gradually 
blinding  his  intellect,  benumbing  his  moral  sense,  de- 


SEX  AND  MARRIAGE  IN  HEAVEN.  279 


stroying  his  manhood.  And  sec  how  that  wife  pursues 
her  erring  liusband  !  How  she  chngs  to  him  as  a  part, 
and  the  stronger  part,  of  herself!  How  she  pleads  with 
him  on  bended  knees,  with  tearful  eyes,  in  angel  tones 
— only  as  love  can  plead !  And  how,  also,  she  pleads 
with  God  and  heaven  in  his  behalf!  How  she  waits  and 
watches  and  prays— how  she  bears  and  suffers  and  for- 
gives until  seventy  times  seven,  only  as  love  can  bear 
and  suffer  and  forgive !  And  see,  too,  what  triumphs 
she  sometimes  achieves ! — the  salvation  of  a  wrecked 
and  sinking  soul ! 

Can  this  deep,  mighty  love  which  God  has  placed  in 
woman's  heart,  which  can  work  such  miracles  of  healing 
here  below,  which  has  such  power  on  earth  to  soften, 
subdue  and  bless,  and  which,  from  its  very  nature,  so 
yearns  for  an  intellect  to  cling  to  and  guide  it — can  such 
love  perish  when  the  body  dies  ?  Will  there  be  no  sphere 
for  its  activity,  no  use  and  no  reciprocation  of  it,  in  heaven  ? 
Then  woman  as  woman  cannot  live  in  heaven.  And  if 
woman  lives  not  there,  what  man  having  within  him  the 
soul  of  a  man,  would  not  say  that  heaven  would  be  no 
heaven  to  him. 

Again  :  the  eternity  of  conjugial  love,  and  the  conse- 
quent existence  of  marriages  in  heaven,  may  be  reason- 
ably inferred  from  the  fact  that  consorts  who  have  lived 
together  happily  on  earth,  internally  desire  that  this 
relation  may  be  continued  in  the  world  beyond.  And 
it  is  not  the  vicious  and  degraded  in  whom  this  desire 
is  strongest.  These  know  nothing  of  the  pure  delights 
of  marriage ;  they  have  little  or  no  respect  for  its  sacred 
obligations  here,  and,  of  course,  think  and  care  but  little 


28o 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


about  the  relation  hereafter.  But  they  who  have  the 
intensest  desire  for  the  eternity  of  the  conjugial  tie,  and 
the  firmest  beHef  that  marriages  do  exist  in  heaven,  are 
usually  those  whose  state  of  life  is  nearest  that  of  the 
angels — the  wisest,  purest,  humblest,  best — those  who 
have  experienced  most  of  the  exalted  and  spiritual  de- 
lights of  marriage  here  on  earth.  Yes:  it  is  the  most 
heavenly-minded  consorts  who  most  ardently  long  for 
the  eternity  of  marriage,  and  who  are  least  willing  to 
admit  that  it  exists  not  beyond  the  grave.  It  is  painful 
to  them  to  think  of  the  utter  cessation  of  the  conjugal 
relation  at  death  ;  for  they  feel  that  heaven  without  mar- 
riage would  be  no  heaven  to  them. 

"  That  they  who  are  in  love  truly  conjugial,"  says 
Swedenborg,  "  regard  what  is  eternal,  is  because  there 
is  eternity  in  that  love,  and  its  eternity  is  from  this :  be- 
cause that  love  with  the  wife  and  wisdom  with  the  hus- 
band increases  to  eternity,  and  in  the  increasing  or  pro- 
gression consorts  enter  more  and  more  deeply  into  the 
blessedness  of  heaven,  which  their  wisdom  and  the  love 
of  it  at  the  same  time  store  up  in  themselves.  Where- 
fore if  the  idea  of  eternal  should  be  rooted  out,  or  from 
any  accident  escape  from  their  minds,  it  would  be  as  if 
they  were  cast  down  from  heaven.  What  state  consorts 
in  heaven  have,  when  the  idea  of  eternal  falls  out  of  their 
minds,  and  the  idea  of  temporary  falls  in  in  its  place, 
came  into  open  view  with  me  from  this  experience : 
Once,  from  permission  given,  two  consorts  were  with 
me  from  heaven  ;  and  at  that  time  the  idea  of  eternal 
concerning  marriage  was  taken  from  them  by  a  certain 
worthless  spirit  speaking  cunningly;  which  being  taken 
away,  they  began  to  wail,  saying,  that  they  could  live 
no  longer,  and  that  they  felt  a  wretchedness  which  they 
never  felt  before ;  which  being  perceived  by  their  fellow- 


SEX  AXD  MARRIAGE  IN  HE  A  VEX.  28 1 


angels  in  heaven,  the  worthless  spirit  was  removed  and 
cast  down  ;  when  this  was  done,  the  idea  of  eternal  in- 
stantly returned  to  them,  from  which  they  were  glad- 
dened with  gladness  of  heart,  and  most  tenderly  em- 
braced each  other." — C.  L.  n.  216. 

Now,  whose  faith  and  perceptions  on  a  subject  of  this 
nature  are  most  trustworthy  ?  Those  of  the  vicious  and 
profligate,  or  those  of  the  pure  and  good?  So  sure — 
rely  upon  it — so  sure  as  there  is  a  God  who  heareth  and 
answereth  prayer,  the  deep  though  unuttered  prayer  of 
his  children  on  this  subject — a  prayer  up  springing  from 
a  heart-felt  want  which  his  own  boundless  love  has  im- 
planted— will  not  be  all  unheeded.  And  if  their  prayer 
is  heard  and  heeded,  there  surely  must  be  marriages  in 
heaven. 

Once  more :  Who  are  those  that  love  the  bonds  of 
marriage  most  intensely  ?  Who  contemplate  wedded 
life  with  the  highest  delight,  and  find  in  it  the  purest 
and  most  abundant  joy?  Not  the  carnal-minded  and 
vicious,  but  the  most  spiritual  and  righteous — those 
whose  walk  with  God  is  closest  and  humblest,  and  who 
discharge  with  the  greatest  fidelity  all  their  daily  duties. 
Consorts  whose  character  is  nearest  like  that  of  the  an- 
gels— provided  there  be  some  internal  fitness  of  each  to 
each — experience  a  pure  and  heavenly  delight  in  mar- 
riage which  the  vicious  can  never  know.  Therefore  they 
love  it  best.  And  the  farther  they  advance  in  the  re- 
generate life,  the  more  faithfully  they  do  the  Heavenly 
Father's  will,  the  nearer  they  approach  to  that  innocent, 
pure  and  loving  state  in  which  the  angels  are,  the  more 
closely  do  their  hearts  become  wedded  to  each  other, 
24* 


282 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


and  the  higher  and  purer  deh'ght  do  they  ffnd  in  mar- 
riage. If  this  be  so — and  we  know  it  is — the  conclusion 
is  irresistible  that  there  must  be  marriages  in  heaven ; 
and  not  only  so,  but  that  this  relation  must  exist  there 
in  its  greatest  perfection,  and  the  delights  thence  result- 
ing be  the  sweetest  and  most  abundant.  And  we  should 
also  infer  that  the  farther  the  angels  advance  in  the  di- 
vine life,  the  more  perfectly  would  the  souls  of  consorts 
there  be  united,  and  the  fuller  and  more  perfect  be  their 
blessedness.    Accordingly  Swedenborg  says: 

"  It  was  shown  mc  what  is  the  manner  of  the  progress 
of  the  delights  arising  from  conjugial  love,  this  way  to- 
ward heaven  and  that  way  toward  hell.  The  progress 
of  the  delights  toward  heaven  was  into  blessednesses 
and  happinesses  continually  multiplying,  till  they  became 
innumerable  and  ineffable  ;  and  as  the  progression  was 
more  interior,  it  was  into  blessednesses  and  happinesses 
still  more  innumerable  and  ineffable,  till  it  came  even  to 
the  essential  heavenly  blessednesses  and  happinesses  of 
the  inmost  heaven,  or  the  heaven  of  innocence  ;  and  this 
by  a  most  perfectly  free  principle,  for  all  freedom  is  of 
love,  consequently  the  most  perfect  freedom  is  of  con- 
jugial love  which  is  essentially  celestial.  Afterwards 
was  shown  the  manner  of  the  progress  of  the  delights 
of  conjugial  love  toward  hell,  in  that  they  remove  them- 
selves by  degrees  from  heaven,  and  this  also  from  an 
apparently  free  principle,  till  at  length  there  are  scarce 
any  remains  of  a  human  principle  in  them.  The  deadly 
and  infernal  principle  in  which  they  close  cannot  be 
described." — A.  C.  n.  2744. 

In  conclusion  : — We  have  thus  far  examined  Sweden- 
borg's  revelation  on  this  subject,  in  the  light  of  reason 
and  known  facts.    Here,  as  on  other  subjects,  he  has 


S/iX  AND  MARRIAGE  IN  HEAVEN. 


283 


spoken  quite  contrary  to  the  current  creed  of  Christen- 
dom, it  is  true ;  but  it  is  equally  true  that  he  has  spoken 
quite  in  accordance  with  the  dictates  of  our  highest  rea- 
son and  the  teachings  of  a  sound  mental  philosophy. 

We  see  that  marriages  in  heaven  result  necessarily 
from  the  nature,  constitution  and  wants  of  the  soul,  and 
from  the  obvious  fact  that  each  one  preserves  his  own 
identity  in  the  Hereafter,  and  takes  with  him  into  the 
other  world  all  that  appertains  to  his  immortal  part — all 
his  dominant  thoughts,  inclinations,  dispositions  and 
feelings.  For  marriage  is  a  necessity  of  our  human  na- 
ture in  its  highest  and  most  perfect  state.  It  is  one  of 
the  deepest  wants  both  of  man  and  woman— one  that 
is  woven,  as  it  were,  into  the  very  fibres  of  our  spiritual 
as  well  as  natural  being.  Upon  the  whole  constitution 
with  which  God  has  endowed  human  beings,  He  has 
written  his  great  and  beneficent  design  in  this  particular, 
as  in  characters  of  living  light.  And  we  may  rest  as- 
sured that  He  has  nowhere  written  a  word  to  the  con- 
trary;  for  He  never  contradicts  Himself 

Thus  do  the  great  Swede's  disclosures  on  this,  as  on 
all  other  subjects  connected  with  the  Hereafter,  rest 
securely  on  the  constitution  of  our  whole  nature,  physi- 
cal and  spiritual,  and  are  seen  to  be  in  perfect  agreement 
with  the  wants,  tendencies,  capabilities,  and  everlasting 
laws  of  the  human  soul.  Therefore  they  must  needs 
agree  with  the  teachings  of  God's  Word  ;  for  this,  too, 
is  adapted  to  the  wants  of  our  spiritual  nature,  and  con- 
tains in  its  bosom  the  laws  of  the  human  spirit.  And 
because  his  pneumatology  builds  itself  on  such  a  firm 
foundation,  therefore  its  truth  is  undeniable,  and  must 


284 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


endure  so  long  as  the  human  soul  endures,  and  its  laws 
and  tendencies  remain  what  they  are. 

But  the  Bible,  says  an  objector,  teaches  that  "  in  the 
resurrection  they  neither  marry  nor  are  given  in  mar- 
riage "  (Matt.  xxii.  30).  How  is  this  language  to  be 
understood,  and  how  is  its  teaching  to  be  reconciled 
with  that  of  Swedenborg  ?  Our  next  chapter  will  be 
devoted  to  the  consideration  of  this  question. 


XXIII. 

SEX  AND  MARRIAGE  IN  HEAVEN— SCRIPTURE 
TESTIMONY. 

THAT  there  should  be  marriages  in  heaven,  is 
something  so  reasonable  in  itself,  and  withal  so 
desirable  by  those  who  have  any  true  idea  of  the  spir- 
itual nature  of  true  marriage,  that  Christians  in  gen- 
eral would  readily  believe  it,  did  it  not  seem  contrary 
to  the  explicit  teachings  of  Scripture.  Tlieir  highest 
reason  favors  the  idea ;  the  distinguishing  characteris- 
tics of  the  masculine  and  feminine  soul,  s^em  to  neces- 
sitate the  relation  in  the  Hereafter ;  and  the  deepest 
want  of  our  nature  and  the  best  feelings  of  the  regener- 
ate heart,  encourage  the  hope  that  it  may  be  as  the 
great  seer  has  revealed.  Yet  they  cannot  accept  Swe- 
denborg's  teaching  on  this  subject,  because  of  the 
Lord's  words  to  the  unbelieving  Sadducees,  quoted  at 
the  conclusion  of  the  last  chapter. 

That  pious  minds  should,  in  view  of  the  Scripture  re- 


SCRIPTURE  TESTIMONY. 


285 


ferred  to,  feel  some  repugnance  toward  the  new  doc- 
trine— a  repugnance  all  the  stronger,  too,  in  proportion 
to  their  reverence  for  the  Scripture — is  not  surprising. 
And  when  opposition  to  any  of  the  great  Swede's  re- 
vealings  springs  from  such  pious  ground — from  a  belief 
that  they  are  contrary  to  the  Word  of  the  Lord — we 
confess  to  a  profound  respect  for  it.  We  blame  no  one 
for  his  opposition  to  the  doctrines  promulgated  by  Swe- 
denborg,  while  he  honestly  believes  that  they  contra- 
dict the  Bible.  W^e  would  not  have  a  person  accept  a 
word  he  teaches — nay,  would  counsel  him  not  to  accept 
it — so  long  as  it  seems  to  him  contrary  to  the  teachings 
of  the  Divine  Word. 

Yet  we  would  urge  all  to  remember  this :  that  the 
Lord  reveals  Himself  in  his  Works  as  well  as  in  his 
Word;  that  both  these  Volumes  are  alike  his,  and 
therefore  alike  sacred ;  and  that  his  laws,  from  which- 
ever of  these  sources  ascertained,  are  equally  divine, 
and  equally  entitled  to  our  reverence.  We  would  beg 
them  further  to  bear  in  mind,  that  men  are  just  as  liable 
to  misunderstand  and  misinterpret  one  of  these  Vol- 
umes as  the  other.  There  is  nothing  to  secure  us  abso- 
lutely against  misunderstanding  either;  and  the  proofs 
are  abundant  that  both  have  often  been  misinterpreted. 
Whenever  these  two  Volumes,  therefore,  Nature  and 
Revelation,  seem  in  conflict,  we  may  be  sure  that  the 
conflict  is  only  apparent,  and  arises  from  our  misunder- 
standing one  or  the  other ;  and  it  is  the  part  of  wis- 
dom to  endeavor  to  ascertain  ivJiicli  it  is  that  we  have 
misunderstood.  As  God's  Word  may  help  us  to  see 
and  understand  Him  in  his  works,  so  the  revelation  of 


286 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


his  will  in  his  works  may  often  aid  us  to  a  right  under- 
standing of  his  Word.  He  is  our  Creator ;  and  some  of 
his  purposes  concerning  us  are  written  upon  the  hu- 
man soul  as  legibly  as  they  could  be  written  in  a  book 
or  on  tables  of  stone,  and  as  easy  to  be  misunderstood. 
And  among  his  purposes  thus  plainly  written,  is  that  in 
regard  to  the  conjugial  relation  and  its  existence  in  the 
world  beyond.  A  marriage  union  of  the  sexes,  not 
merely  in  this  world  but  in  heaven  likewise,  is  legibly 
inscribed  on  the  whole  nature  and  constitution  of  man 
and  woman,  by  God's  own  finger. 

And  now  let  us  see  if  the  passage  in  Matthew  (xxii. 
30)  really  teaches  anything  contrary  to  this — as  many 
Christians  think  it  does,  and  as  at  first  sight,  indeed,  it 
appears  to  teach. 

The  question  which  the  unbelieving  Sadducees  had 
put  to  our  Lord  on  the  occasion  referred  to,  shows  that 
they  had  no  idea  of  marriage  as  an  internal  and  spirit- 
ual relation — a  soul  union.  Their  views  of  it  were  of 
the  lowest  kind.  They  thought  of  it  as  a  relation 
which  might  exist  between  one  woman  and  any  num- 
ber of  men ;  and  vice  versa.  The  idea  of  an  eternal 
adaptation  of  one  man  to  one  woman  and  only  one, 
seems  never  to  have  entered  their  minds.  It  was  not, 
therefore,  of  real  marriage  that  they  were  thinking 
when  they  put  to  our  Lord  the  question:  "Therefore 
in  the  resurrection  whose  wife  shall  she  be  of  the 
seven?"  for,  as  Swedenborg  says,  "there  are  no  uiai'- 
riages  elsewhere  than  in  heaven ;  but  beneath  heaven 
[that  is,  among  those  in  low  or  external  states]  there 


SCRIPTURE  TESriMOXY. 


287 


are  only  nuptial  connections  {connnbia)  which  are  tied 
and  parted."    (C.  L.  n.  192.) 

Now  it  was  simply  of  these  connnbia  that  the  Saddu- 
cees  were  thinking,  when  they  propounded  to  our  Lord 
the  question  about  the  woman  that  had  been  married  or 
tied  to  seven  brethren.  And  the  answer  He  gave  them 
was  the  answer  to  the  thought  in  their  understanding; 
and  it  was  the  truth.  It  was  as  if  He  had  said :  "  That 
of  which  you  are  thinking  is  not  marriage,  but  only  an 
external  or  nuptial  connection.  And  as  this  is  what  you 
think  is  marriage,  it  is  therefore  what  you  inquire  about. 
And  in  reply,  I  tell  you  there  are  no  such  marriages  in 
the  great  Hereafter.  Then  and  there,  or  in  the  resur- 
rection, they  neither  marry  nor  are  given  in  marriage, 
according  to  your  idea  of  this  relation  ;  but  are  as  the 
angels  of  God  in  heaven — constitutionally  and  organic- 
ally adapted  each  to  the  other,  as  parts  of  one  and  the 
same  whole." 

The  Lord's  reply  to  the  Sadducees,  therefore,  con- 
sidered as  an  answer  to  the  thought  in  their  minds,  was 
true  even  in  its  literal  sense.  But  his  words  all  have  a 
meaning  deeper  than  that  of  the  letter.  "  The  words 
that  I  speak  unto  you,"  He  says,  "  are  spirit  and  are  life." 
(John  vi.  63.) 

A  slight  examination  of  the  passage  in  Matthew,  to- 
gether with  the  context,  will  show  us  that  reference  is 
here  had  more  especially  to  spiritual  marriage,  or  the 
union  of  good  and  truth  in  human  minds,  and  the  con- 
sequent conjunction  of  such  minds  with  the  Lord.  This 
is  the  spiritual  or  heavenly  meaning  of  marriage,  and 
the  meaning  which  those  attach  to  the  term  when  it  oc- 


288 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


curs  in  Scripture,  who  understand  the  Lord's  words  ac- 
cording to  their  spiritual  sense.  That  such  is  the  kind 
of  marriage  more  particularly  referred  to  in  his  reply  to 
the  Sadducees,  is  plain  from  the  context.  Before  pro- 
pounding their  question  they  referred  to  what  Moses 
taught  respecting  marriage  with  a  deceased  brother's 
wife — a  plain  matter  of  fact,  so  plain  that  it  could  not  be 
misunderstood  if  its  literal  sense  alone  w&re  the  sense  in- 
tended. Yet  the  first  words  in  the  Lord's  reply,  were : 
"  Ye  do  err,  not  kiioiving  the  Scriptures  nor  the  power  of 
God."  But  they  did  know  the  Scriptures  in  their  literal 
sense,  and  they  understood  the  passage  in  Moses  about 
marriage  merely  in  that  sense.  But  because  the  literal 
is  not  the  true  way  of  understanding  the  Scriptures,  and 
because  they  knew  nothing  of  the  true  spiritual  signifi- 
cation of  marriage,  therefore  the  Lord  says  to  them, 
"  Ye  do  err,  not  knowing  the  Scriptures." 

Besides,  at  the  commencement  of  the  chapter  which 
records  this  conversation,  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  com- 
pared to  a  marriage ;  and  all  who  are  invited  to  become 
subjects  of  this  kingdom,  are  represented  as  called  to  the 
marriage.  And  in  the  Revelation  we  read :  "  Blessed 
are  they  that  are  called  to  the  marriage  supper  of  the 
Lamb."  The  Lord,  too,  is  often  called  Husband  and 
Bridegroom  in  the  Word ;  and  the  church,  composed  of 
all  who  become  spiritually  conjoined  to  Him  by  a  life  of 
obedience  to  his  commandments,  is  called  his  Wife  and 
Bride.  Thus  in  Isaiah  :  "  Thy  Maker  is  thy  Husband  ; 
the  Lord  of  hosts  is  his  name."  (liv.  5.)  And  in  Mat- 
thew: "Can  the  children  of  the  bridechamber  mourn  so 
long  as  the  Bridegroom  is  with  them  ?  "    And  in  the 


SCRIPTURE  TESTIMONY. 


289 


Apocalypse  the  angel  who  talked  with  John,  said:  "  Come 
hither,  and  I  will  show  thee  the  Bride,  the  Lamb's  Wife." 
(xxi.  9.)  And  in  the  next  verse  we  are  told  who  the 
Bride  is — the  Holy  Jerusalem,  the  true  church  of  the 
Lord.  "  And  he  carried  me  away  in  the  spirit  to  a  great 
and  high  mountain,  and  shewed  me  that  great  city,  the 
Holy  Jerusalem,  descending  out  of  heaven  from  God." 
And  on  another  occasion  the  seer  heard  the  voice  of  a 
great  multitude  in  heaven,  saying :  "  Let  us  rejoice  and 
be  glad,  and  give  honor  to  Him  ;  for  the  marriage  of  the 
Lamb  is  come,  and  his  Bride  hath  made  herself  ready." 
(xix.  7.) 

Do  not  such  passages  prove  that  marriage,  when  men- 
tioned in  Scripture,  has  a  spiritual  meaning  ?  And  that 
it  signifies  that  conjunction  of  the  Lord  with  his  people, 
which  is  elsewhere  spoken  of  as  the  reciprocal  indwell- 
ing of  the  Lord  in  man  and  man  in  the  Lord.  And  this 
takes  place  in  proportion  as  we  receive  from  Him  love 
and  wisdom,  or  in  the  degree  that  we  learn  truth,  and, 
through  religious  obedience  to  its  requirements,  cleanse 
our  hearts  of  all  selfish  and  evil  loves ;  for  in  that  de- 
gree our  interiors  are  opened,  and  we  receive  an  influx 
of  the  Lord's  life — we  appropriate,  as  it  were,  the  very 
Divine  substance,  the  Lord's  own  flesh  and  blood. 
Hence  He  says  :  "  He  that  eateth  my  flesh  and  drinketh 
my  blood,  dvvelleth  in  me  and  I  in  him."  The  Lord's 
flesh  is  the  good  of  his  divine  love,  and  his  blood  is  the 
truth  of  his  divine  wisdom. 

As  man  advances  in  the  regenerate  life,  truths  in  his 
understanding  become  married  to  their  corresponding 
goods  in  the  will.  And  this  union  of  truths  with  goods 
25  T 


290 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


in  the  mind,  is  the  spiritual  or  heavenly  marriage ;  and 
in  the  degree  that  it  takes  place,  the  man  is  brought  into 
a  state  of  marriage  union  with  his  Maker.  He  is  in  the 
Lord,  and  the  Lord  is  in  him  ;  and  he  delights  to  do  the 
will  of  the  Lord.  In  the  degree,  therefore,  that  this 
heavenly  marriage  takes  place  in  any  mind,  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  comes  to  that  mind. 

This  union  or  marriage  of  good  and  truth  in  human 
minds,  comes  from  the  marriage  of  Divine  Love  and 
Divine  Wisdom  in  the  Lord;  for  these  in  Him  are  uni- 
ted like  heat  and  light  in  the  sun.  And  they  proceed 
as  one  from  Him,  and  arc  received  by  the  angels  as  one. 
For  the  angels  have  no  will  contrary  to  the  Lord's. 
They  love  to  do  what  He  loves  to  have  them  do.  Thus 
they  live  in  marriage  union  with  Him,  having  in  them- 
selves— and  this,  from  Him — the  heavenly  marriage  of 
good  and  truth. 

But  the  state  of  the  unregenerate  man  is  for  otherwise. 
His  will  is  opposed  to  the  will  of  the  Lord.  Good  and 
truth  do  not  exist  in  marriage  union  in  his  mind.  Evil 
instead  of  good  loves  are  in  his  will,  which  are  opposed 
to  the  truths  in  his  understanding.  He  does  not  love 
to  do  what  the  truth  teaches  him  he  ought  to  do.  And 
before  he  can  come  into  the  heavenly  state,  he  must 
regard  and  shun  as  a  sin  against  God  the  indulgence  of 
every  inclination  which  the  truth  condemns.  Whenever 
we  shun  the  indulgence  of  any  evil  as  sin,  that  evil  is 
gradually  removed,  and  the  opposite  good  affection 
takes  its  place.  The  truth  in  our  understanding  which 
revealed  and  condemned  the  evil,  is  thus  married  to  its 
corresponding  good  in  the  will.    And  by  a  succession 


SCRIPTURE  TESTIMONY. 


291 


of  such  marriages  the  work  of  regeneration  advances 
and  the  heavenly  state  is  gradually  perfected.  But  it  is 
only  the  truths  which  we  religiously  obey  while  here 
on  earth,  that  become  married  to  goods  in  the  will,  and 
so  remain  with  us  permanently.  Truths  that  are  known 
and  not  obeyed,  acquire  no  permanent  abode  in  the  soul. 
They  may  seem  to  be  ours,  but  they  are  not  until  they 
become  of  the  life — until  they  are  brought  down  and 
obeyed,  and  thus  become  rooted,  as  it  were,  in  the  natural 
degree  of  the  mind.  We  have  no  real  interior  affection 
for  them,  and  when  we  come  fully  into  the  state  of  our 
interiors,  as  we  shall  in  the  other  world,  they  will  be 
taken  from  us,  for  we  shall  then  deny  and  reject  them. 
Accordingly  it  is  written  :  "  Whosoever  hath  not,  from 
him  shall  be  taken  even  that  which  he  seemeth  to  have." 
(Luke  viii.  18.)  Truths  that  have  been  disregarded  and 
disobeyed  by  us  in  the  life  on  earth,  cannot  be  married 
to  their  appropriate  goods  in  the  world  bc)'ond  ;  nor  can 
the  good  and  delightful  things  of  heaven  which  are  born 
of  such  marriage,  be  then  and  there  given  us.  And  this 
is  the  meaning  of  these  words  of  the  Lord,  understood 
in  their  spiritual  sense :  "  For  in  the  resurrection  they 
neither  marry  nor  are  given  in  marriage." 

We  thus  see  that  this  Scripture,  rightly  understood, 
is  by  no  means  opposed  to  the  new  doctrine  concerning 
marriages  in  heaven.  Even  its  literal  sense,  rightly  in- 
terpreted, teaches  nothing  to  the  contrary.  For  there 
are  no  such  nuptial  connections  in  heaven  as  the  Saddu- 
cees  thought  of  as  marriage,  and  about  which,  as  the 
Lord  perceived,  they  inquired  of  Him. 

Then  there  are  other  passages  of  Scripture,  which, 


292 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


understood  in  their  literal  sense,  clearly  favor  the  doc- 
trine taught  by  Swcdenborg.  As  that,  "  a  man  shall 
leave  his  father  and  mother  and  cleave  unto  his  wife; 
and  they  twain  shall  be  one  flesh."  (Gen.  ii.  24.)  And 
these  words  of  the  Lord  in  answer  to  the  Pharisees : 
"  Have  ye  not  read  that  He  who  made  them  at  the  be- 
ginning, made  them  male  and  female?  And  said,  For 
this  cause  shall  a  man  leave  father  and  mother  and  shall 
cleave  to  his  wife ;  and  they  twain  shall  be  one  flesh. 
Wherefore  they  are  no  more  twain,  but  one  flesh.  What, 
therefore,  God  hath  joined  together,  let  not  man  put 
asunder."  (Matt.  xix.  5-7.) 

We  are  here  taught  that  man  and  woman  were  de- 
signed for  each  other  from  their  very  creation  ;  that  they 
are  adapted,  each  to  the  other,  and  so  joined  together 
as  parts  of  one  and  the  same  whole,  by  the  Creator 
Himself  And  it  surely  would  not  be  said  of  beings 
created  to  live  forever,  that  God  had  joined  them  to- 
gether, if  there  were  no  joining  of  their  immortal  part 
— no  mutual  and  organic  adaptation  of  soul  to  soul. 
The  beings  that  God  joins  together,  must  be  organically 
fitted  to  each  other  as  parts  of  one  whole,  and  must 
therefore  be  joined  for  the  full  term  of  their  existence, 
A  man  and  a  woman  may  be  joined  in  an  external  union 
— a  semblance  of  marriage — agreeable  to  human  laws ; 
and  may  separate  in  a  few  months  for  lack  of  mutual 
love,  or  of  the  proper  organic  adaptation  of  soul  to  soul. 
Can  it  be  said  of  such  that  they  were  joined  together 
by  God  ?  Every  one  can  see  that  this  would  be  charg- 
ing the  Creator  with  folly.  Then  extend  the  time,  and 
suppose  the  parties  joined  in  an  external  marriage  for 


SCRIPTURE  TESTIMONY. 


293 


ten,  twenty,  or  fifty  years,  and  then  to  separate  for  lack 
of  the  proper  constitutional  adaptation  of  each  to  the 
other;  could  it  with  any  greater  propriety  be  said  that 
they  were  joined  by  God  ?  No  :  Man  may  join  or  tic 
together  beings  who  are  internally,  constitutionally  and 
mutually  repugnant,  and  do  not  really  belong  together; 
just  as  they  may  join  truth  with  evil,  heaven  with  hell 
in  their  own  minds.  But  all  such  alliances  must,  from 
their  very  nature,  be  sooner  or  later  dissolved.  But 
those  whom  God  joins  together,  are  and  must  be  joined 
in  the  inmost  ground  of  their  being.  And  if  created  to 
live  forever,  they  must  (if  joined  by  Him)  be  joined  not 
for  a  day,  but  for  the  whole  term  of  their  existence  ;  and 
so  joined  as,  of  twain,  to  make  one  flesh — one  whole 
mind  or  person. 

"  Marriage  in  heaven,"  says  Swedenborg,  "  is  the 
conjoining  of  two  into  one  mind.  .  .  .  Two  married 
partners  in  heaven,  therefore,  are  not  called  two  but 
one  angel." — H.  H.  n.  367. 

"The  most  perfect  and  noble  human  form,  is  when 
two  forms  become  one  by  marriage,  thus  when  two 
fleshes  become  one  flesh,  according  to  creation.  The 
mind  of  the  man  is  then  elevated  into  superior  light, 
and  the  mind  of  the  wife  into  superior  heat ;  and  then 
they  germinate,  blossom  and  fructify,  as  trees  in  the 
time  of  spring." — C.  L.  n.  201. 

This,  we  see,  is  in  perfect  agreement  with  what  we 
read  in  Genesis  (v.  i,  2) :  "  In  the  day  that  God  created 
man,  in  the  likeness  of  God  created  He  him,  male  and 
female  created  He  them,  and  blessed  them  and  called 
their  name  Adam  [or  man]."  It  requires  both  the  male 
25* 


294 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


and  female  to  make  the  adam — the  man — that  is  the 
zuholc  man.  Therefore  God  called  the  name  of  the  two 
conjoined — the  male  and  female — their  name,  adam. 
And  the  Adam,  including  both  sexes,  is  said  to  have 
been  in  tJic  likeness  of  God.  The  reason  is,  that  the  fe- 
male was  created  to  be  an  image  more  especially  of  the 
Divine  Love,  and  the  male  to  be  an  image  more  espe- 
cially of  the  Divine  Wisdom.  And  as  the  union  of  Di- 
vine Love  and  Divine  Wisdom  is  eternal,  the  conclu- 
sion is  irresistible  that  the  marriage  of  the  male  and 
female,  whose  union  images  that  of  these  tv/o  principles 
in  the  Divine,  must  also  be  eternal. 

We  are  further  taught  by  the  Lord,  that  "for  this 
cause,"  that  is,  because  we  were  created  male  and  fe- 
male, "  shall  a  man  leave  father  and  mother,  and  shall 
cleave  to  his  wife;"  which  shows  us  that  the  conjugial 
relation  is  to  endure  when  the  parental,  or  the  tie  that 
binds  parent  to  child,  has  ceased  to  exist.  And  endure 
how  long?  How  long  shall  a  man  cleave  unto  his 
wife  ?  Clearly  so  long  as  their  distinctive  natures  re- 
main what  they  are,  and  there  exists  such  a  mutual  and 
organic  adaptation  of  soul  to  soul,  that  they  twain,  by 
cleaving  to  each  other,  are  no  longer  two  but  one. 

The  Bible,  therefore,  teaches  that  man  and  woman 
were  created  for  union  in  heaven,  as  truly  as  it  teaches 
that  they  were  created  for  each  other  and  belong  to- 
gether during  their  earthly  sojourn.  And  if  it  teaches 
that  marriage  on  earth  was  designed  by  Him  who  made 
us,  it  teaches  with  equal  clearness  that  it  was  intended 
for  man's  highest  or  heavenly  state,  and  that  its  dura- 
tion will  be  coterminous  with  that  of  the  soul  itself. 


NA  TURE  OF  CONJUGIAL  LOVE.  295 


XXIV. 

CONJUGIAL  LOVE-ITS  NATURE. 

BUT  marriages  in  heaven,  Swedcnborg  tells  us,  are 
quite  different  from  marriages  on  earth.  They  are, 
like  everything  else  there,  more  interior  and  perfect, 
and  consequently  more  blissful.  The  love  that  binds 
in  marriage  union  two  parties  in  the  realms  above,  is 
the  true  conjugial  love.  And  this  is  not  mere  sexual 
love,  which  in  itself  is  impure,  and  is  felt  by  natural 
men  and  even  by  the  lower  animals.  It  is  a  pure  spir- 
itual affection.  Souls  in  heaven  are  drawn  together 
and  held  together  by  a  love  of  what  is  really  good  and 
true — of  what  there  is  of  the  Lord  in  souls.  A  female 
angel  looks  and  longs  for  wisdom  in  the  male,  for  this 
is  what  delights  her  most.  And  in  proportion  as  any 
male  angel  embodies  the  particular  kind  of  wisdom 
with  which  she  is  most  delighted,  she  loves  him.  And 
she  loves  him  because  of  the  Lord's  wisdom  which  she 
perceives  in  him,  and  with  which  her  soul  yearns  for 
conjunction.  And  the  male  angel  looks  and  longs  for 
love  in  the  female,  pure,  innocent,  tender,  gentle,  like 
the  Lord's  own  love,  for  this  is  what  delights  him  most. 
And  he  loves  her  in  the  degree  that  she  embodies  in 
herself  the  special  kind  of  love  that  agrees  with  his 
special  kind  and  degree  of  wisdom.  And  so  it  is  the 
Lord's  love  which  he  perceives  in  her,  and  which  is  the 
life  and  soul  of  his  wisdom,  that  is  to  him  the  peculiar 
attraction. 

Thus  consorts  in  heaven  love  only  what  there  is  of 


296 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


the  Lord  in  each  other.  And  the  more  there  is  of  the 
Lord  in  both — the  more  the  man's  understanding  is 
enlightened  by  his  wisdom  and  the  more  the  woman's 
heart  is  warmed  by  his  love,  so  much  the  more  do 
they  love  and  delight  in  each  other,  and  the  closer, 
therefore,  is  their  union. 

Moreover,  conjugial  love  as  it  exists  in  heaven,  is  all 
from  the  Lord.  It  has  its  origin  in  the  divine  marriage 
of  love  and  wisdom  in  Him  ;  and  thence  it  descends  into 
angelic  minds,  and  into  minds  of  men  who  are  nearest 
like  the*  angels.  This  is  clearly  perceived  by  consorts 
in  heaven  ;  and  they  also  perceive  that  the  more  faith- 
fully they  do  the  will  of  the  Lord,  the  more  are  their 
minds  opened  to  the  reception  of  his  love  and  wisdom, 
and  the  more  do  they  experience  of  their  heavenly  de- 
lights in  the  love  they  feci  for  each  other.  And  it  is 
given  them  further  to  perceive  that  conjugial  love  corre- 
sponds to  the  marriage  of  the  Lord  with  his  church  ;  for 
as  husband  and  wife  in  heaven  mutually  love  each  other, 
so  the  Lord  loves  the  church,  his  Bride,  and  forever  wills 
that  it  should  love  and  be  conjoined  with  Himself,  her 
Husband. 

It  thus  appears,  both  from  its  origin  and  correspond- 
ence, how  pure  and  holy  conjugial  love  is,  and  what 
sanctity  there  is  in  marriage  as  it  is  viewed  in  heaven. 
The  Lord  himself  being  regarded  as  the  source  and 
centre  and  very  essence  of  it,  this  love  with  the  angels 
is  not  only  free  from  terrestrial  defilements,  but  is  the 
fountain  of  all  other  angelic  loves. 

"  If  conjugial  love,"  says  Swedenborg,  "  be  received 
from  its  author  who  is  the  Lord,  sanctity  from  Him  fol- 


NATURE  OF  CONJUGIAL  LOVE. 


297 


lows,  which  continually  cleanses  and  purifies  it.  .  .  . 
Considered  in  its  essence  and  from  its  derivation,  it  is 
holy  and  pure  before  every  love  with  angels  and  men.  .  . 
It  is  the  fundamental  love  of  all  the  loves  of  heaven  and 
the  church,  because  its  origin  is  from  the  marriage  of 
good  and  truth  ;  and  from  this  marriage  proceed  all  the 
loves  which  make  heaven  and  the  church  with  man. 
Two  consorts  between  whom  or  in  whom  this  love  exists, 
are  an  image  and  form  of  it;  and  all  in  heaven,  where 
the  faces  are  genuine  types  of  the  affections,  are  like- 
nesses thereof  .  .  .  Therefore  if  conjugial  love  be  heav- 
enly and  spiritual,  the  loves  proceeding  from  it  arc  also 
heavenly  and  spiritual.  This  love,  therefore,  is  as  a 
parent,  and  all  other  loves  are  as  the  offspring.  Hence 
from  the  marriages  of  the  angels  in  heaven,  are  produced 
spiritual  offspring  which  are  of  love  and  wisdom,  or  of 
good  and  truth.'" — C.  L.  n.  64,  '5. 

From  this  it  maybe  seen  that  conjugial  love  is  some- 
thing quite  different  from  the  mere  love  of  the  sex.  It 
is  pure  and  heavenly  in  its  nature,  and  can  exist  only 
with  rational,  regenerate,  heavenly-minded  persons.  The 
love  of  the  sex  has  supreme  regard  to  self  and  self-grati- 
fication ;  but  conjugial  love  has  supreme  regard  to  the 
Lord  and  the  things  that  are  well-pleasing  to  Him.  The 
love  of  the  sex  belongs  to  our  carnal  or  animal  nature ; 
conjugial  love  belongs  to  our  spiritual  and  immortal  part. 
The  love  of  the  sex  is  low — "  of  the  earth,  earthy  " ; 
conjugial  love  is  from  the  Lord  out  of  heaven,  and  is 
supreme  above  all  other  loves.  The  love  of  the  sex 
exists  with  natural  and  even  sensual  men  ;  conjugial  love, 
only  with  those  who  are,  in  some  degree  at  least,  spir- 
itual and  regenerate.    Swedenborg  says  : 

"  The  love  of  the  sex  is  of  the  external  or  natural  man. 


298 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


and  hence  is  common  to  every  animal.  Every  man  is 
born  corporeal,  and  becomes  more  and  more  interiorly 
natural ;  and  as  he  loves  intelligence  he  becomes  rational, 
and  afterwards  if  he  loves  wisdom  he  becomes  spiritual. 
...  If  he  stand  still  in  the  first  threshold  in  the  progres- 
sion to  wisdom,  the  form  of  his  natural  mind  remains, 
and  this  receives  the  influx  of  the  universal  sphere  (which 
is  of  the  marriage  of  good  and  truth)  no  otherwise  than 
do  the  inferior  subjects  of  the  animal  kingdom — the 
beasts  and  birds — receive  it ;  and  as  these  are  merely 
natural,  man  becomes  like  unto  them  [in  the  matter  we 
are  now  speaking  of],  and  so  loves  the  sex  in  like  man- 
ner as  they  do. 

"  But  conjugial  love  is  of  the  internal  or  spiritual  man, 
because,  as  a  man  becomes  more  intelligent  and  wise,  he 
becomes  more  internal  or  spiritual ;  and  in  the  same  de- 
gree the  form  of  his  mind  is  more  perfected,  and  this 
form  receives  conjugial  love;  for  it  therein  is  sensible  of 
a  spiritual  joy  which  is  inwardly  blessed,  and  from  this 
a  natural  joy  which  derives  soul,  life  and  essence  from 
that." — C.  L.  n.  94,  95. 

But  conjugial  love  may  be  said  to  be  included  in  the 
love  of  the  sex  like  a  gem  in  its  matrix.  It  is  the  spir- 
itual internal  whereof  the  love  of  the  sex  is  the  natural 
external.  It  is  the  love  of  the  sex  regenerated,  spir- 
itualized, cleansed  of  its  defilements,  lifted  from  earth  to 
heaven.  The  love  of  the  sex,  like  all  other  natural  loves, 
is  first  in  time — first  in  the  order  of  development;  but 
conjugial  love,  like  all  spiritual  loves  and  the  spiritual 
man  himself,  is  first  in  end — first  in  the  order  of  import- 
ance. 

We  thus  see  how  the  love  between  married  pairs  in 
heaven,  called  conjugial  love,  differs  from  the  natural 
man's  love  of  the  sex — a  love  which  often  leads  to  unions 


NATURE  OF  COX  JUG  I AL  LOVE. 


299 


here  on  earth  which  we  call  marriage,  but  which  are  as 
purely  natural  and  external  as  is  the  love  that  leads  to 
them. 

In  heaven  there  exists,  we  are  told,  the  most  delight- 
ful freedom — the  freedom  of  perfect  love.  The  love  of 
rule,  or  of  exercising  dominion,  one  over  the  other,  is 
wholly  unknown  among  angelic  consorts.  Their  souls 
are  so  perfectly  united — every  fibre  of  their  hearts  is  so 
intertwined,  each  with  the  other's,  that  they  have  no 
separate  and  independent  life  ;  nor  do  they  desire  to 
have  any.  Each  lives  in  and  for  the  other,  and  forever 
desires  to  live  so.  What  one  desires  and  wills,  the  other 
desires  and  wills  also.  One  thinks  no  thought  which 
the  other  does  not  think ;  one  cherishes  no  purpose 
which  the  other  does  not  cherish  ;  one  feels  no  joy  which 
the  other  does  not  feel ;  one  breathes  no  prayer  which 
the  other  does  not  breathe.  Their  everlasting  bond  of 
union  is  God's  holy  spirit  of  truth  and  love  dwelling  and 
operative  in  their  hearts  ;  and  "  where  the  spirit  of  the 
Lord  is,  there  is  liberty,"  for  there  is  wisdom  and  there 
is  love;  and  "what  is  done  from  love  truly  conjugial,  is 
done  in  freedom  on  both  sides,  for  all  freedom  is  of  love, 
and  each  has  freedom  when  one  loves  what  the  other 
thinks  and  wills"  (A.  C.  10,173).  The  least  inclination 
to  exercise  dominion,  or  to  force  the  will  of  the  other, 
is  foreign  to  the  nature  of  conjugial  love,  and  something 
which  does  not  exist  in  heaven. 

"The  love  of  exercising  dominion  one  over  the  other 
completely  takes  away  conjugial  love  and  its  heavenly 
delight;  for  conjugial  love  and  its  deliglit  consist  in 
this  :  that  the  will  of  one  be  that  of  the  other,  and  this 


300 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


mutually  and  reciprocally.  The  love  of  dominion  in 
marriage  destroys  this;  for  he  who  domineers  wishes 
that  his  will  should  be  in  the  other,  and  none  of  the 
other's  reciprocally  in  himself.  Hence  there  is  nothing 
mutual,  consequently  no  reciprocal  communication  of 
one's  love  and  its  delight  with  the  other.  Yet  this  com- 
munication and  thence  conjunction  is  the  interior  delight 
itself  in  marriage,  which  is  called  blessedness.  The  love 
of  dominion  completely  extinguishes  this  blessedness, 
and  with  it  all  celestial  and  spiritual  love.  .  .  When  one 
wills  or  loves  what  the  other  docs,  both  enjoy  freedom  ; 
for  all  freedom  is  the  offspring  of  love.  But  when  there 
is  dominion,  neither  is  free.  One  is  a  slave,  and  so  is 
the  other  that  exercises  dominion,  because  he  is  led  as 
a  slave  by  the  lust  of  domineering." — H.  H.  n.  380. 

Marriage  in  the  heavens  being  the  conjunction  of  two 
minds  into  one,  can  exist  only  between  one  man  and 
one  woman.  And  so  completely  arc  their  souls  wedded, 
that  their  thoughts  and  affections  never  wander  from 
each  other.  The  husband  never  thinks  of  any  female 
but  his  own  wife  with  other  feelings  than  those  of  charity 
and  mutual  love.  If  he  should,  that  moment  the  bless- 
edness of  conjugial  love  would  depart,  and  darkness 
would  invade  the  souls  of  both.  The  wife  would  expe- 
rience a  dreadful  sinking  at  the  heart,  as  if  the  light  of 
her  life  were  about  to  be  extinguished.  And  a  similar 
result  would  follow,  should  the  wife  think  fondly  of  any 
other  man  than  her  own  husband. 

"  You  two  are  one,"  said  Swedenborg  to  a  married 
couple  in  heaven.  "  And  the  man  answered,  We  are 
one.  Her  life  is  in  me,  and  mine  in  her.  We  are  two 
bodies,  but  one  soul.  The  union  between  us  is  like  that 
bctvveen  the  two  tents  in  the  breast,  called  heart  and 


NATURE  OF  CONJUGIAL  LOVE. 


301 


lungs.  She  is  my  heart,  and  I  am  her  lungs.  But  since 
by  heart  we  here  understand  love,  and  by  lungs  wisdom, 
she  is  the  love  of  my  wisdom  and  I  am  the  wisdom  of 
her  love.  Therefore  her  love  from  without  veils  my 
wisdom,  and  my  wisdom  from  within  is  interiorly  in  her 
love.  Hence  there  is  an  appearance  of  the  unity  of  our 
souls  in  our  faces.  I  then  asked,  If  such  union  exists, 
can  you  look  at  any  other  woman  than  your  own  ?  He 
replied,  I  can  ;  but  as  my  wife  is  united  to  my  soul,  we 
both  look  together.  .  .  While  I  look  at  the  wives  of 
others,  I  look  at  them  through  my  own  wife  whom  alone 
I  love."— C.  L.  n.  75. 

"  All  of  us  here  say  that  the  husband  is  truth  and  his 
wife  is  good ;  and  that  good  cannot  love  any  truth  but 
its  own,  neither  can  trutli  in  return  love  any  good  but 
its  own.  If  any  other  were  loved,  internal  marriage 
which  makes  the  church  would  perish,  and  there  would 
be  only  external  marriage  to  which  idolatry  and  not  the 
church  corresponds.  Therefore  marriage  with  one  wife 
we  call  sacrcdness  ;  but  should  it  have  place  with  more 
than  one  among  us,  we  should  call  it  sacrilege." — Ibid, 
n.  76. 

As  the  love  of  the  sex  which  is  external  and  natural, 
differs  in  its  nature  from  conjugial  love  which  is  internal 
and  spiritual,  so  also  do  their  delights  differ.  The  de- 
lights of  the  former  are  fleeting  and  transitory  like  all 
merely  natural  delights — becoming  less  and  less  delight- 
ful, too,  the  longer  they  are  enjoyed ;  but  those  of  the 
latter,  like  all  pure  and  spiritual  delights,  are  eternal  and 
immortal  —  becoming  more  and  more  delightful  the 
longer  they  are  experienced.  And  since  this  love  as  it 
exists  in  heaven,  is  most  innocent,  pure  and  holy — the 
fountain-head,  as  it  were,  of  all  other  angelic  loves — so 
all  heavenly  satisflictions,  joys  and  delights  are  gathered 
26 


302 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


into  this;  for  this  love  above  all  others  opens  the  inte- 
rior recesses  of  the  soul,  through  which  gush  the  streams 
of  life  pure  from  their  eternal  Fountain. 

"As  conjugial  love,"  says  Swedenborg,  "is  the  fun- 
damental love  of  all  good  loves,  and  as  it  is  inscribed 
on  the  most  minute  particulars  of  man,  it  follows  that 
its  pleasures  exceed  those  of  all  other  loves,  and  also 
that  it  makes  other  loves  pleasant  according  to  its  pres- 
ence and  its  conjunction  with  them  ;  for  it  expands  the 
inmosts  of  the  mind  and  at  the  same  time  of  the  body, 
as  the  delightful  current  of  its  fountain  flows  through 
and  opens  them.  All  pleasures  from  first  to  last  are 
gathered  into  this  love,  because  of  the  superior  excel- 
lence of  its  use  iibove  all  others,  which  is  the  propa- 
gation of  the  human  race  and  thence  of  the  angelic 
heaven  ;  and  because  this  use  was  the  end  of  ends  in 
creation,  it  follows  that  all  the  blessedness,  happiness, 
gladness,  gratifications  and  pleasures,  which  could  pos- 
sibly be  conferred  on  man  by  the  Lord  the  Creator,  are 
gathered  into  this  love." — C.  L.  n.  68. 

"  Conjugial  love  in  its  origin  is  from  the  marriage  of 
good  and  truth,  and  this  marriage  is  from  the  Lord. 
And  because  love  is  such  that  it  wills  to  make  another 
whom  it  loves  from  the  heart,  a  partaker  of  yea,  to  con- 
fer upon  him,  joys,  and  from  thence  itself  to  take  its 
own ;  infinitely  more,  therefore,  does  the  Divine  Love 
which  is  in  the  Lord,  will  thus  toward  man  whom  He 
created  a  receptacle  both  of  love  and  wisdom  proceed- 
ing from  Himself  And  because  He  created  him  into 
the  reception  of  these,  the  man  into  the  reception  of 
wisdom  and  the  woman  into  the  reception  of  the  love 
of  the  wisdom  of  the  man,  therefore  from  inmosts  He 
infused  into  men  (Jioiiii)tcs)  conjugial  love,  into  which 
He  might  bring  together  all  things  blessed,  satisfactory, 
agreeable  and  delicious,  which  proceed  together  with 


iXATUKE  or  CONJUGIAL  LOVE. 


life  solely  from  his  divine  love  through  his  divine  wis- 
dom, and  flow  in  ;  consequently  into  those  who  are  in 
love  truly  conjugial,  because  these  alone  are  recipients. 
Innocence,  peace,  tranquillity,  inmost  friendship,  full 
confidence  and  mutual  desire,  of  mind  and  heart,  of  do- 
ing every  good  to  the  other,  are  named,  inasmuch  as 
innocence  and  peace  are  of  the  soul,  tranquillity  is  of 
the  mind,  inmost  friendship  is  of  the  bosom,  full  confi- 
dence is  of  the  heart,  and  the  mutual  desire  of  mind  and 
heart  of  doing  every  good  to  the  other,  is  of  the  body 
from  them." — C.  L.  n.  180. 

The  truth  of  all  this  must  appear  sufficiently  obvious 
to  one  who  contemplates  the  effects  of  the  love  mutual- 
ly felt  by  a  young  man  and  maiden  in  the  warmth  and 
glow  of  its  first  summer;  for  in  their  innocent  young 
love  there  is  something  which  allies  it  to  the  loves  of 
the  angels.  And  when  their  love  is  reciprocated,  what 
a  new "  world  seems  suddenly  opened  before  them ! 
What  fountains  of  new  feeling  are  straightway  un- 
locked !  What  new  and  strange  delights  are  kindled 
in  their  bosoms !  What  floods  of  joy  hitherto  un- 
known, are  opened !  What  exhilarating  and  fragrant 
aroma  diffuses  itself  through  all  the  chambers  of  their 
souls !  And  this  new  love  which  is  felt  as  something 
unspeakably  delightful,  at  the  same  time  quickens  and 
exalts  all  their  other  loves,  and  imparts  to  them  a  fresh 
delight.  They  are  more  kind  and  tender  and  affection- 
ate toward  everybody.  They  clasp  the  whole  human 
family  to  their  hearts.  They  feel  a  new  and  unwonted 
affection  for  even  the  fields  and  flowers  and  the  brute 
creation,  and  seem  to  love  tilings  and  persons  that  they 
never  loved  before. 


304 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


If  such  be  the  effects  of  youthful  love  here  on  earth 
in  its  first  warmth  and  freshness,  it  is  easy  to  believe 
that  conjugial  love  in  heaven,  which  is  so  much  purer, 
deeper  and  stronger,  is  the  parent  and  source  of  all 
other  heavenly  loves;  and  that  into  this  love,  as  Swe- 
denborg  assures  us,  arc  gathered  "  all  joys  and  all  de- 
lights from  first  to  last." 

Then,  to  think  of  this  love  with  angelic  consorts  as 
not  only  continuing  forever,  but  growing  stronger  and 
purer  and  more  delightful  with  every  fresh  accession  of 
wisdom,  and  this  through  endless  ages !  And  this,  too, 
we  can  easily  believe  when  we  consider  the  origin  and 
correspondence  and  spiritual  nature  of  this  love.  And 
with  equal  readiness  does  the  rational  mind  accept  as 
true  the  following  relation  which  Swedenborg  says  he 
received  from  a  married  couple  who  had  been  for  ages 
in  heaven,  and  from  whom  "  there  breathed  forth  a  ver- 
nal warmth  with  a  sweet-smelling  odor  as  from  the  ear- 
liest flowers  in  gardens  and  fields." 

"We  have  been  consorts,"  said  they,  "now  for  ages, 
and  continually  in  the  flower  of  age  in  which  you  see 
us.  Our  first  state  was  as  the  state  of  a  virgin  and  young 
man  when  they  unite  themselves  by  marriage.  And  we 
then  believed  that  that  state  was  the  very  blessedness 
of  our  life.  But  we  heard  from  others  in  our  heaven, 
and  afterwards  we  ourselves  perceived,  that  that  state 
was  one  of  heat  not  tempered  with  light,  and  that  it  is 
successively  tempered  as  the  husband  is  perfected  in 
wisdom  and  the  wife  loves  that  wisdom  in  the  husband; 
and  that  this  is  done  by  means  of  uses,  and  according  to 
those  which  each  by  mutual  aid  renders  in  society ;  also 
that  delights  succeed  according  to  the  degree  of  light 
and  heat,  or  of  wisdom  and  its  love.  .  . 


NATURE  OF  CONJUGIAL  LOVE. 


"  These  things  being  said,  the  man  gave  me  his  right 
hand,  and  conducted  me  to  houses  where  were  consorts 
in  like  flower  of  age  with  themselves.  And  he  said  that 
those  wives,  now  seen  as  virgins,  were  in  the  world  in- 
firm old  women,  and  the  husbands  now  seen  as  youths, 
were  there  decrepid  old  men ;  and  that  they  were  all  re- 
stored b)'  the  Lord  to  this  blooming  age.  because  they 
loved  each  other  mutually,  and  from  religion  shunned 
adulteries  as  enormous  sins.  He  further  said  that  no 
one  knows  the  blissful  delights  of  conjugial  love,  but 
he  who  rejects  the  dreadful  pleasures  of  adultery ;  and 
that  no  one  can  reject  these,  but  he  who  is  wise  from 
the  Lord  ;  and  that  no  one  is  wise  from  the  Lord,  unless 
he  docs  uses  from  the  love  of  use. 

"  I  also  saw  the  utensils  of  their  houses,  all  of  which 
were  in  heavenly  forms,  and  glittered  with  gold  as  it 
were  flaming  from  the  rubies  set  therein." — C.  L.  n.  137. 

Such  is  a  faint  and  imperfect  outline  of  the  new  doc- 
trine of  marriage  as  it  exists  in  heaven.  Such  the  ori- 
gin, correspondence,  spiritual  nature,  ends  and  uses  of 
love  truly  conjugial ;  and  such  its  unutterable  and  ever- 
lasting delights.  Can  we  conceive  of  anything  in  the 
nature  of  marriage  more  beautiful,  more  perfect,  more 
desirable,  or  which  carries  more  plainly  on  its  face  the 
very  impress  of  heaven — the  stamp  of  pure  and  eternal 
truth  ?  It  is  such  a  view  of  the  subject  as  satisfies  the 
deepest  want,  the  devoutest  longing,  and  the  highest 
reason  of  every  regenerate  soul ;  and  we  have  seen  how 
perfectly  it  agrees,  too,  with  Holy  Scripture. 

And  how  do  the  views  here  presented  exalt  and  dig- 
nify the  institution  of  marriage!  What  beauty  and 
sanctity  do  they  throw  over  it,  and  how  do  they  lift  it 
up  from  earth  to  heaven !  Who  is  there,  whose  eye  is 
26*  U 


3o6 


11 E A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


not  dimmed  by  error  or  blinded  by  prejudice,  that  cannot 
see  in  this  heavenly  doctrine  something  of  the  wisdom 
and  love  and  glory  of  the  Lord  ?  Who  cannot  here  see 
Him  coming  to  the  long  beclouded  minds  of  men  on 
this  grand  subject,  with  new  and  precious  and  convincing 
truth — yea,  "  with  power  and  great  glory  "  ? 


E  have  all  along  invited  the  reader's  attention  to 


V  V  the  practical  bearing  and  value  of  Swedenborg's 
disclosures  concerning  heaven.  And  we  have  done  this 
for  two  reasons  :  first,  because  no  stronger  evidence  of 
their  truth  can  be  offered  than  their  obvious  usefulness 
when  practically  applied ;  and  second,  because  upon  no 
single  point,  perhaps,  is  Swedenborg  more  generally 
misunderstood  than  on  this.  The  great  practical  value 
of  his  teachings  and  revealings  cannot  be  too  strongly 
emphasized.  They  all  have  relation  to  life,  and  come 
close  home  to  us  as  husbands,  fathers,  wives,  mothers, 
merchants,  mechanics,  members  of  society  and  citizens 
of  the  state.  All  truth  must  have  relation  to  life;  for 
what  higher  purpose  can  it  have,  or  for  what  nobler  end 
could  it  be  given,  than  to  teach  us  how  to  live  that  we 
may  be  most  useful  and  most  happy  ? 

We  have  seen  that  the  great  Swede's  disclosures  con- 
cerning sex  and  marriage  in  heaven,  rest  upon  a  solid 
foundation.  Scripture  and  reason,  the  desires  and  hopes 


XXV. 


PRACTICAL  CONSIDERA  TIONS. 


PR  A  C  TIC  A  L  COXSIDERA  T/OXS. 


of  the  best  men  and  women  everywhere,  and  the  con- 
stitutional requirements  of  both  sexes,  unite  in  attesta- 
tion of  their  truth.  We  have  seen,  too,  what  is  the 
nature  of  marriage  as  it  exists  in  heaven;  also  what  true 
conjugial  love  is,  whence  it  originates,  who  only  can 
receive  it  and  on  what  conditions,  and  what  paradisiacal 
delights  How  from  its  reception.  From  a  union  of  souls 
in  heaven,  spiritual  offspring  (which  are  heavenly  thoughts 
and  affections  ever  fresh  and  new)  are  continually  being 
born  to  the  wedded  pair;  and  these  exalt  and  strengthen 
their  love,  as  natural  offspring  do  on  earth — but  in  a  far 
higher  degree. 

"  The  angels,"  says  Swedenborg,  "  have  conjugial  love 
according  to  their  wisdom,  and  the  increments  of  that 
love  and  its  delights  according  to  the  increments  of  wis- 
dom. And  the  spiritual  offspring  that  are  born  of  their 
marriages,  are  such  things  as  are  of  wisdom  from  the 
father  and  of  love  from  the  mother,  which  offspring  they 
love  from  spiritual  storge  ;  which  love  adds  itself  to  their 
conjugial  love,  and  continually  exalts  it,  and  conjoins 
them." — C.  L.  n.  211. 

We  are  taught  to  pray :  "  Thy  will  be  done  on  earth 
as  it  is  done  in  heaven."  If  marriages,  then,  really  exist 
in  heaven,  their  nature,  when  revealed,  should  teach  us 
what  marriages  here  on  earth  ought  to  be — yes,  and 
what  they  wi/l  be  when  the  Father's  will  shall  be  done 
here  as  it  is  done  in  heaven.  What,  then,  is  the  practical 
lesson  to  be  derived  from  Swedenborg's  disclosures  on 
this  subject?  What,  in  view  of  this  new  doctrine,  will 
be  the  primary  thought  and  chief  aim  of  those  contem- 
plating marriage,  or  who  have  already  entered  upon  it, 


3o8 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


if  in  their  hearts  they  are  really  praying  the  prayer  which 
the  Lord  taught  his  disciples  ? 

Their  first  and  controling  thought  will  be  of  the  Lord. 
As  all  true  conjugial  love  is  from  Him,  and  He  is  the 
all-in-all  of  every  true  marriage,  therefore  their  souls 
will  first  be  lifted  to  Him  in  prayer.  All  who  accept  the 
heavenly  doctrine  on  this  subject,  will  see  that  there  can 
be  no  real  marriage  except  where  there  is  a  union  of 
souls;  and  such,  therefore,  is  the  union  they  will  desire 
and  seek.  They  will  see  that  their  highest  earthly  bliss 
depends  upon  it.  Any  other  union  may,  perchance,  em- 
bitter their  whole  lives  ;  or  if  not  this,  may  deprive  them 
of  all  the  sweetness  and  delights  of  marriage.  While 
there  is,  on  the  one  hand,  no  heavier  or  more  consuming 
grief  than  to  be  tied  to  an  uncongenial  and  ill-adapted 
mate,  there  is,  on  the  other,  no  purer  earthly  bliss  than 
that  experienced  by  consorts  whose  souls  are  wedded 
each  to  each.  It  is  a  bliss  closely  allied  to  that  of 
heaven. 

And  not  only  are  the  happiness  and  spiritual  growth 
of  the  parties  themselves  involved  in  this  relation,  but 
the  character  and  happiness  of  their  posterity,  through 
successive  generations.  For  children  born  of  parents 
who  are  in  love  truly  conjugial,  inherit  from  them,  to  a 
degree  above  others,  an  inclination  to  the  things  of 
heavenly  life — the  truths  of  wisdom  and  the  goods  of 
love. 

"  Offspring,"  says  Swedcnborg,  "  born  of  two  who  are 
in  love  truly  conjugial,  draw  from  their  parents  the  con- 
jugial of  good  and  truth  ;  "  that  is,  "they  inherit,  more 
than  others,  an  aptness  and  facility  for  conjoining  good 


PRACTICAL  CONSIDER  A  TTONS. 


to  truth  and  truth  to  good,  thus  for  becoming  wise  ;  con- 
sequently also  for  imbibing  the  things  of  the  church  and 
heaven. 

"  I  have  heard  from  the  angels  that  those  who  lived 
in  the  most  ancient  times,  live  at  this  day  in  heaven  .  .  . 
in  like  manner  as  they  had  lived  on  earth,  because  love 
truly  conjugial  was  with  them  ;  and  that  their  offspring 
inherited  from  them  inclinations  to  the  conjugial  of  good 
and  truth,  and  that  they  were  easily  initiated  into  it  more 
and  more  internally  by  the  parents  by  education,  and 
when  they  became  of  more  mature  judgment,  were  intro- 
duced into  it  as  of  themselves  by  the  Lord." — C.  L.  202, 
'4.  '5- 

We  thus  see  what  solemn  and  weighty  considerations 
exist,  to  induce  all  who  are  contemplating  marriage,  to 
seek  a  truly  conjugial  union.  And  how  can  they  expect 
to  form  such  a  relation,  without  looking  devoutly  for 
guidance  to  Him  who  is  the  light  of  all  minds,  and  the 
source  of  all  true  marriages  on  earth  as  well  as  in  heaven. 
There  is  no  single  act  in  life  wherein  the  guidance  of 
Divine  wisdom  is  so  much  needed,  as  in  that  of  mar- 
riage. 

As  soon,  therefore,  as  a  man  begins  to  think  seriously 
of  entering  into  this  sacred  relation — involving,  as  it 
does,  not  only  his  own  best  welfare,  but  the  character 
and  well-being  of  his  posterity — he  should  enter  into 
his  closet,  the  secret  closet  of  his  heart,  and  pray  to  the 
Father  that  seeth  in  secret,  for  the  wisdom  and  guidance 
which  he  so  much  needs.  And  if  he  sincerely  desires' 
to  be  led  of  the  Lord  in  a  matter  so  momentous,  and 
looks  to  Him  with  humble  and  supplicating  heart,  he 
cannot  fail  to  be  led  in  the  right  way. 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


"Every  society  of  heaven,"  says  Swedenborg,  "con- 
sists of  persons  of  similar  character.  They  who  are 
alike,  are  brought  together  not  of  themselves  but  of  the 
Lord.  In  like  manner  conjugial  partners  whose  minds 
are  capable  of  being  conjoined  into  one,  are  drawn  to- 
gether; and  at  first  sight  they  deeply  love  each  other, 
and  see  that  they  are  conjugial  partners,  and  enter  into 
marriage.  Hence  all  the  marriages  in  heaven  are  of 
the  Lord  alone." — H.  H.  n.  383. 

This  is  the  case  with  those  who  have  died  in  infancy 
or  childhood,  and  been  educated  in  heaven.  They  have 
never  contracted  any  evil  habits,  and  have  learned  and 
practiced  the  true  worship.  It  is  the  indwelling  of  the 
Lord  in  their  hearts  which  gives  such  perception.  But 
it  is  otherwise  on  earth,  mainly  because  children  are 
not  here  nurtured,  nor  surrounded  by  such  sweet  relig- 
ious atmospheres,  as  they  are  in  heaven.  They  are  not 
early  taught  to  deny  self,  and  to  shun  all  known  evils 
as  sins.  And  sin  always  clouds  the  mind's  clear  vision. 
Forgetting  or  turning  our  backs  on  the  Lord,  as  we  do 
when  we  disobey  his  precepts,  is  what  shuts  out  the 
light  of  heaven  from  the  soul.  And  this  light  gone,  we 
walk  in  darkness.  And  "  he  that  walketh  in  darkness, 
knoweth  not  whither  he  goeth." 

From  the  heavenly  view  of  marriage  that  we  have 
presented,  it  is  further  seen  that,  if  one  desires  or  hopes 
to  form  a  true  conjugial  union,  he  must  worship  the 
.Lord  in  his  daily  life;  he  must  cultivate  a  reverence 
for  the  written  Word,  and  shun  as  a  sin  all  known  evil. 
There  can  be  no  true  worship  without  this ;  for  it  is  not 
with  words  only  that  the  Lord  is  truly  worshiped. 
Words  alone  do  not  open  the  heart  to  the  reception  of 


PKACTICAL  COXSIDERA  TIONS. 


the  Divine  life.  It  is  works  of  filial  obedience.  It  is 
devout  and  sincere  reverence  for  the  truth,  and  a  reso- 
lute purpose  to  apply  it  to  life.  "  He  that  doctiL  ini/h, 
Cometh  to  the  light." 

Whoever,  therefore,  accepts  the  heavenly  view  of 
marriage  as  now  revealed,  will  see  the  necessity  of 
learning  and  doing  the  will  of  the  Lord,  if  he  expects 
to  form  a  true  conjugial  union.  He  will  see  and  feel 
the  need  of  that  wisdom  which  cometh  from  Above — 
the  wisdom  of  a  righteous  and  useful  life.  He  will  see 
that,  without  this  wisdom  he  can  never  be  really  loved 
by  a  true  woman;  for  a  true  woman  can  love  only  what 
there  is  of  wisdom  in  a  man.  He  will  see  the  necessity, 
therefore,  of  becoming  a  form  of  heavenly  wisdom  be- 
fore he  can  hope  to  be  truly  loved  by  a  heavenly-mind- 
ed woman.  So  soon  as  he  begins  to  think  of  marr\  ing, 
therefore,  he  will  (if  he  accepts  the  heavenly  doctrine 
on  this  subject)  begin  to  think  of  learning  wisdom  from 
the  Lord.  He  will  begin,  if  he  has  not  already,  to  re- 
gard and  shun  evils  as  sins  against  God.  If  he  has  any 
vicious  habits — as  of  idleness,  intemperance,  licentious- 
ness, profanity — he  will  straightway  abandon  them.  If 
he  has  no  useful  occupation  he  will  seek  one.  If  he 
is  false,  dishonest,  conceited,  self-seeking,  or  worldly- 
minded,  he  will  repent,  humbly  invoke  the  Divine  aid, 
and  earnestly  set  about  the  work  of  reformation.  If  he 
has  scoffed  at  religion  or  trifled  with  holy  Scripture,  he 
will  change  his  course  and  begin  to  cultivate  a  rever- 
ence for  the  Word  and  for  all  sacred  things.  For  we 
are  taught  by  this  new  revelation  that  the  conjunction 
of  a  wife  is  with  the  rational,  moral  and  spiritual  wisdom 
of  the  husband. 


312 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


"  Of  moral  wisdom  with  the  men  are  all  the  moral 
virtues  which  regard  the  life,  and  enter  it,  as  are  also 
the  spiritual  virtues  which  flow  forth  from  love  to  God 
and  from  love  towards  the  neighbor,  and  flow  together 
into  those  loves.  The  virtues  which  pertain  to  the 
moral  wisdom  of  men,  are  called  temperance,  sobriety, 
probity,  benevolence,  friendship,  modesty,  sincerity, 
obligingness,  civility;  also  sedulity,  industry,  skilful- 
ness,  alacrity,  munificence,  liberality,  generosity,  activ- 
ity, intrepidity,  prudence  ;  besides  more.  The  spiritual 
virtues  with  the  men  are  the  love  of  religion,  charity, 
truth,  faith,  conscience,  innocence;  besides  more.  The 
latter  virtues  and  the  former  may  in  general  be  referred 
to  love  and  zeal  for  religion,  for  the  public  good,  for 
one's  country,  for  his  fellow-citizens,  for  his  parents,  for 
his  consort  and  for  his  children.  In  all  these,  justice 
and  judgment  rule;  justice  is  of  moral  wisdom,  and 
judgment  is  of  rational  wisdom." — C.  L.  n.  164. 

Such  is  the  practical  lesson  which  this  new  doctrine 
teaches  every  man  so  soon  as  he  begins  seriously  to 
think  of  entering  the  marriage  relation.  And  it  teaches 
a  similar  lesson  to  every  marriageable  woman.  By 
proclaiming  a  union  of  souls,  and  the  spiritual  uses  of 
marriage  as  well  as  the  spiritual  nature  of  love  truly 
conjugial,  it  teaches  every  woman  who  desires  a  true 
marriage,  the  necessity  of  elevating  her  thoughts  and 
affections  to  things  spiritual  and  divine,  and  of  looking 
for  some  measure,  at  least,  of  heavenly  wisdom  in  the 
man  whom  she  is  to  call  her  husband.  It  teaches  her 
that  the  supreme  delights  of  marriage  can  never  be 
known  except  to  the  spiritually  minded  and  regenerate ; 
and  that  if  she  loves  a  man  who  is  destitute  of  heavenly 
wisdom,  it  is  with  a  natural,  selfish  or  worldly  love 


PR  A  C  TIC  A  L  CO  NEWER  A  TIONS. 


3T3 


which  can  endure  only  so  long  as  the  natural  and 
worldly  feelings  are  gratified.  Wives  in  heaven,  we 
are  told,  love  only  what  is  of  wisdom  in  their  husbands; 
and  all  true  wisdom  is  from  the  Lord. 

Every  woman,  therefore,  who  fully  accepts  this  new 
and  heavenly  doctrine,  will,  before  she  gives  her  con- 
sent to  marry,  demand  that  her  suitor  shall  give  evi- 
dence not  merely  of  some  degree  of  worldly  wisdom, 
but  of  that  wisdom  especially  which  cometh  from 
Above ;  that  he  be  a  man  of  religious  principle — a  man 
whose  ruling  purpose  it  is  to  know  and  do  the  will  of 
the  Lord,  who  heeds  the  voice  of  duty  sooner  than  the 
promptings  of  self-interest,  and  is  ever  ready  to  make 
personal  sacrifice  in  defense  of  the  right  and  the  true. 
To  such  a  man,  a  woman  may  safely  give  her  hand  and 
heart.  But  there  is  no  security — almost  no  hope — for 
her  future  peace  and  welfare,  if  she  consents  to  marry 
one  who  is  devoid  of  religious  principle.  Nothing — 
no  amount  of  worldly  wealth,  no  rank,  station,  or  con- 
nections however  high  and  honorable,  can  compensate 
for  the  lack  of  this.  And  this  every  woman  will  plainly 
see,  who  understands  and  fully  receives  this  heavenly 
doctrine  of  marriage. 

Such  is  the  practical  lesson  which  this  new  doctrine 
teaches  to  young  men  and  maidens — to  all,  indeed,  who 
are  contemplating  wedded  life. 

And  not  less  important  is  the  instruction  which  the 
doctrine  contains  for  those  who  have  already  entered 
the  matrimonial  state.  It  teaches  both  husbands  and 
wives  that  they  cannot  know  what  true  conjugial  love 
is,  nor  have  experience  of  its  pure  delights,  save  in  the 
27 


314 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


degree  that  their  souls  become  conjoined  to  the  Lord 
by  a  hfe  of  use,  and  of  religious  obedience  to  the  Divine 
precepts.  The  angels  say  that  the  marriage  state  be- 
comes more  blissful  and  perfect  "  as  the  husband  is  per- 
fected in  wisdom,  and  the  wife  loves  that  wisdom  in 
the  husband ;  and  that  this  is  done  by  means  of  uses, 
and  according  to  the  uses  which  each  of  them  by  mu- 
tual aid  affords  in  society." — C.  L.  n.  137. 

"  No  others  come  into  conjugial  love,  or  can  be  in  it, 
but  those  who  come  to  the  Lord,  and  love  the  truths 
of  the  church  and  do  its  goods  ;  because  .  .  this  love, 
considered  as  to  its  origin  and  correspondence,  is  heav- 
enly, spiritual,  holy,  pure  and  clean  above  every  love 
that  is  with  the  angels  of  heaven  and  the  men  of  the 
church  ;  and  these  its  attributes  cannot  be  given  but  to 
those  who  are  conjoined  to  the  Lord,  and  by  Him  con- 
sociated  with  the  angels  of  heaven. 

"  That  they  come  into  this  love,  and  can  be  in  it, 
who  love  the  truths  of  the  church  and  do  its  goods,  is 
because  no  others  are  accepted  of  the  Lord  ;  for  these 
are  in  conjunction  with  them,  and  thence  can  be  held  in 
that  love  of  Himself  .  .  .  The  truth  of  faith  causes  the 
Lord's  presence,  and  the  good  of  life  according  to  truths 
of  faith  causes  conjunction  with  Him,  and  thereby  heav- 
en and  the  church." — C.  L.  n.  70,  'l,  '2. 

Thus  the  new  doctrine  teaches  to  married  pairs  the 
importance  of  beginning  their  wedded  life  with  the 
Lord.  It  teaches  the  necessity  of  looking  to  Him  and 
becoming  internally  conjoined  to  Him  through  a  life 
of  obedience  to  his  precepts,  before  they  can  come  into 
a  state  of  genuine  love  towards,  or  of  spiritual  union 
with,  each  other.  The  reason  is,  that  true  conjugial 
love  is  from  the  Lord ;  and  only  those,  therefore,  can 


PRACTICAL  COXSIDERA  TIOXS. 


be  in  it  and  experience  its  delights,  who  are  in  Him 
and  He  in  them.  It  is  well  known  that  husbands  and 
wives  feel  the  warmest  love  for  each  other  when  in  the 
most  faithful  performance  of  all  their  duties ;  and  it  is 
the  faithful  discharge  of  our  duties,  which  brings  us 
into  spiritual  conjunction  with  the  Lord.  The  voice  of 
duty  is  the  voice  of  God  ;  and  as  often  as  we  reverently 
heed  that  voice,  we  are  clasped  more  closely  in  the  Di- 
vine embrace.  Apart  from  God  and  duty,  there  is  not, 
and  never  can  be,  such  a  thing  as  true  conjugial  love  on 
earth  or  in  heaven. 

It  is  evident  enough,  therefore,  that  this  love  is  spir- 
itual in  its  nature,  and  that  only  those  come  into  it  and 
experience  its  delights,  who  come  to  the  Lord  and  learn 
and  do  the  truths  of  his  Word.  And  it  is  no  less  evi- 
dent— from  human  experience  as  well  as  from  the  new 
revealings — that  the  more  faithfully  consorts  perform  all 
their  duties,  the  more  the  husband  increases  in  wisdom 
and  the  wife  in  the  love  of  that  wisdom,  the  more 
closely  wedded  will  their  souls  become,  and  the  more 
fully  will  they  experience  the  delights  of  conjugial  love. 
From  which  we  may  reasonably  conclude  that  mar- 
riages must  exist  in  heaven,  and  become  ever  more  and 
more  delightful  as  the  souls  of  angelic  consorts  become 
more  closely  wedded  to  the  Lord  and  to  each  other. — 
C.  L.  n.  216. 

Such  is  the  important  practical  lesson  which  the  new 
doctrine  concerning  marriages  in  heaven  inculcates.  It 
teaches  consorts  on  earth  to  begin  their  wedded  life 
with  the  Lord.  It  reveals  to  them  the  necessity  (if 
they  would  know  the  supreme  delights  of  marriage),  of 


3l6  HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


living  and  acting  continually  from  religious  principle; 
the  necessity  of  looking  to  the  Lord  and  following  after 
Him,  of  imbibing  and  cherishing  a  Christian  spirit,  and 
of  performing  all  their  duties  with  religious  fidelity;  in 
a  word,  of  making  the  upbuilding  of  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  in  their  hearts  the  ruling  purpose  of  their  lives. 
Having  this  for  their  grand  and  constant  aim,  they  will 
indeed  be  helpmeets  to  each  other  in  the  highest  and 
best  sense ;  for  they  will  be  perpetually  helping  each 
other  on  their  way  to  heaven.  They  will  not  strive  to 
please  by  ministering  to  each  other's  natural  proprium 
— pride,  ambition,  vanity,  or  love  of  self— for  thus  they 
would  shut  out  from  each  other's  hearts  the  Lord  and 
heaven  and  all  true  love;  but  by  kindness  and  gentle- 
ness, yet  with  perfect  frankness  one  towards  the  other, 
by  affectionate  counsel,  encouragement  and  reproof,  by 
mutual  aid  in  revealing  and  overcoming  their  evils,  the 
soul  of  each  will  gradually  become  more  closely  con- 
joined to  Him  from  whom  all  true  love  descends,  and 
the  golden  chain  that  binds  their  hearts  to  each  other, 
will  grow  continually  brighter,  stronger,  and  more 
golden. 

Let  married  partners  here  on  earth  accept  and  adopt 
these  heavenly  views  of  marriage,  let  them  be  ever  mind- 
ful of  its  spiritual  design  and  uses,  and  never  forget  or 
turn  away  from  Him  who  is  the  source  of  all  love  truly 
conjugial,  and  they  will  experience,  in  the  internal  wed- 
ding of  their  souls,  a  bliss  which  the  world  can  neither 
give  nor  take  away.  And  the  pains,  disappointments, 
bereavements,  and  manifold  ills  of  life,  instead  of  weak- 
ening their  attachment,  will  serve  to  bind  their  hearts 


PRACTICAL  CONSIDER  A  TIONS. 


more  closely  together,  and  to  augment  instead  of  lessen- 
ing the  sweet  comfort  of  love. 

Why  is  it  that  the  hearts  of  married  partners  often 
grow  cold  and  colder  towards  each  other  as  the  years 
roll  by  ?  Why  does  married  life  with  many,  at  first  so 
sweet  and  joyous,  after  a  while  prove  to  be  so  dull,  in- 
sipid, almost  wearisome  ?  The  reason  is  obvious.  They 
do  not  understand  or  do  not  accept  the  heavenly  doc- 
trine concerning  marriage,  nor  do  they  know  the  heav- 
enly nature  of  conjugial  love.  They  have  not  entered 
into  the  relation  from  any  exalted  motive,  or  with  any 
spiritual  view  of  it,  nor  sought  to  fulfill  its  obligations 
from  any  religious  principle.  Having  never  looked  to 
the  one  true  Source  for  the  joys  they  anticipated,  having 
lost  or  strayed  away  from  the  path  of  duty,  and  excluded 
God  and  heaven  and  the  things  of  religion  from  their 
affections  and  thoughts,  no  wonder  their  hearts  have 
grown  cold,  and  marriage  worthless,  and  life  itself  wea- 
risome. No  wonder  they  have  not  found  in  this  sacred 
relation  the  heaven  they  expected ;  for  they  looked  in 
the  wrong  direction  for  it— to  the  things  which  are  from 
beneath,  and  not  to  those  which  come  from  above.  They 
expected  a  heaven  where  the  Lord,  religion  and  duty 
were  unheeded  or  unknown  ;  no  wonder,  therefore,  that 
they  were  disappointed. 

"  Man  was  created,"  says  Swedenborg,  "  that  he  might 
become  more  and  more  internal,  and  thus  be  introduced 
or  elevated  more  and  more  nearly  to  the  heavenly  mar- 
riage of  good  and  truth,  and  so  into  love  truly  conjugial, 
even  so  far  as  to  perceive  the  state  of  its  blessedness. 
The  sole  medium  of  such  introduction  or  elevation,  is 
religion. 
27* 


318 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


"  Hence  it  follows  that  where  religion  is  not,  conjugial 
love  is  not  possible  ;  and  where  this  is  not,  there  is  con- 
jugial cold  which  is  the  privation  of  that  love,  conse- 
quently a  privation  of  the  state  of  the  church,  or  of 
religion. 

"  The  first  of  the  internal  causes  of  colds,  is  the  re- 
jection of  religion  by  both  parties.  With  those  who 
throw  back  [or  reject]  .  .  the  sacred  things  of  the  church, 
no  good  love  is  possible.  If  there  is  any  apparent  one 
from  the  body,  still  there  is  none  in  the  spirit.  With 
such  persons  goods  locate  themselves  on  the  outside  of 
evils,  and  cover  them  over  as  cloth  shining  with  gold 
covers  a  rotten  body.  The  evils  which  reside  within 
and  are  covered  over,  are  in  general  hatreds,  and  thence 
intestine  combats  against  everything  spiritual ;  for  all 
things  of  the  church  which  they  reject,  are  in  themselves 
spiritual.  And  because  love  truly  conjugial  is  the  fun- 
damental of  all  spiritual  loves,  it  is  manifest  that  there 
is  intrinsic  hatred  of  that." — C.  L.  n.  238,  '39,  '40. 

It  cannot  be  denied,  therefore,  that  the  legitimate  ten- 
dency of  this  new  doctrine  of  marriage,  is  most  whole- 
some and  benign.  And  this  is  the  strongest  possible 
evidence  of  its  truth.  Where  in  all  the  literature  of 
Christendom  can  we  find  any  teaching  on  the  subject  of 
marriage,  so  exalted  and  reasonable  in  itself,  so  refining 
and  potent  in  its  moral  influence,  so  purifying  and  ele- 
vating in  its  practical  tendency,  as  that  contained  in 
Swedenborg's  treatise  on  Conjugial  Love?  Yet  this  is 
the  book  which,  more  than  any  other  from  the  pen  of 
the  same  illumined  author,  has  been  misrepresented, 
maligned,  ridiculed,  condemned  and  spit  upon  by  the 
professed  followers  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  even  by  men 
claiming  to  be  his  ministers  1   Our  sorrowful  feeling  for 


IVOR  A'  IN  heaven: 


319 


all  such,  finds  its  truest  expression  in  those  divine  words, 
"  Father,  forgive  them,  for  they  know  not  what  they  do." 

Let  this  new  doctrine  concerning  marriage  be  gener- 
ally accepted  and  made  a  doctrine  of  life,  and  what  a 
change  would  shortly  come  over  the  face  of  human  so- 
ciety!  What  different  fathers  and  mothers  should  we 
have!  What  different  sons  and  daughters!  What  a 
different  atmosphere  in  all  our  homes  !  What  a  change 
would  ere-long  be  wrought  in  the  whole  social,  moral 
and  religious  aspect  of  Christendom  !  Married  life  would 
everywhere  cease  to  be  dull  or  insipid,  and  would  be  re- 
garded as  the  very  image  of  heaven  on  earth,  as  indeed 
it  would  be.  And  millions  of  hearts  would  feelingly 
and  joyfully  respond  to  the  sentiment  of  the  poet, 

"  There 's  a  liliss  lieyoml  all  that  the  minstrel  has  told, 

When  two  tliat  are  linked  in  one  heavenly  tie, 
Willi  heart  never  clianging  and  brow  never  cold. 

Love  on  through  all  ills,  and  love  on  till  they  die. 
One  liour  of  a  pas^ion  so  sacred,  is  worth  , 

W  hole  ages  of  heartless  and  wandering  bliss  ; 
An,l,  <,]i  !  if  tliere  be  an  Elysium  on  earth. 

It  is  this— it  is  this!" 


XXVI. 

WORK  IN  HEA  VEN. 

7HENEVER  a  person  contemplates  a  change  of 
V  V    residence,  one  of  the  first  questions  he  usually 
asks  himself,  is,  How  shall  I  employ  myself  in  my  new 
abode?    And  it  is  equally  natural  for  those  who  are 


320 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


hoping  some  day  to  go  to  heaven,  to  ask,  How  shall  we 
be  occupied,  or  what  shall  we  do,  when  we  get  there? 
Has  Swedenborg  answered  this  question  ?  Yes — quite 
explicitly. 

But  first,  let  us  see  what  Christians  prior  to  his  time 
thought  about  it.  On  this,  as  on  most  other  questions 
touching  the  Hereafter,  opinions  were  divided.  Some 
believed  they  should  sit  upon  thrones,  and  that  their 
happiness  would  spring  from  the  exercise  of  regal  au- 
thority. Others,  that  they  would  feast  with  patriarchs 
and  prophets  on  the  daintiest  viands,  and  that  this  would 
be  unutterable  bliss.  Others,  that  they  should  dwell  in 
a  city  with  pearl  gates  and  golden  streets,  be  surrounded 
by  more  than  princely  magnificence,  and  that  idly  gaz- 
ing on  such  outward  splendor  would  make  them  su- 
premely happy.  Others,  that  there  would  be  in  heaven 
a  complete  release  from  all  active  employment,  and  that 
happiness  would  be  found  in  utter  idleness — its  denizens 
forever  quaffing  delights  without  rendering  the  slightest 
service.  Others,  that  heaven  is  a  place  abounding  in 
spontaneous  paradisiacal  joys,  where  all  things  pleasant 
to  the  senses  are  daily  born  with  endless  variety,  and  where 
it  is  bliss  to  respire  the  fresh  and  ever-varying  delights. 
Others  (and  some  Christians  of  the  present  day  may  be 
included  in  this  class)  have  supposed  that  acts  of  formal 
worship — oral  prayer  and  songs  of  thanksgiving  and 
praise — would  be  the  chief  employment  of  the  heavenly 
inhabitants. 

Such  are  the  opinions  which  Christians  have  hitherto 
entertained.  Does  any  one  of  them  appear  reasonable 
in  the  light  of  the  present  day  ?    To  conceive  of  human 


WORK  nv  HEAVEN. 


321 


beings  (for  angels  are  all  human)  forever  occupied  in  any 
of  these  supposed  ways — what  could  be  more  absurd  ! 
Whichever  supposition  you  choose,  presents  heaven  to 
us  as  little  else  than  a  solemn  farce.  For  all  the  above- 
mentioned  ways  of  living,  when  regarded  as  regular 
occupations,  fall  far  below  the  ordinary  employments  of 
people  here  on  earth,  in  point  of  both  dignity  and  im- 
portance. 

Some  may  think  this  language  too  strong  when  ap- 
plied to  the  last  named  occupation.  But  consider  the 
subject  for  a  moment.  Is  there  no  higher  kind  of  wor- 
ship than  oral  prayer  and  hymns  of  thanksgiving  and 
praise?  These,  rightly  regarded,  are  not  ends,  but  sim- 
ply means  to  an  end.  They  are  a  means  of  opening  the 
soul  to  a  freer  influx  of  the  Lord's  love  and  wisdom,  and 
thus  leading  us  to  act  in  accordance  with  his  will  in  the 
manifold  relations  of  life.  To  regard  them  as  anji:hing 
more  or  other  than  helps  to  greater  fidelity  in  the  dis- 
charge of  our  ordinary  duties,  is  to  commit  a  serious 
mistake. 

Suppose  people  on  earth  should  devote  themselves 
exclusively  to  praying  and  psalm-singing,  making  this 
their  regular  occupation  :  should  we  think  they  were 
thereby  worshiping  God  in  a  manner  most  acceptable 
to  Him?  Would  they  thus  be  fulfilling  the  great  end 
of  their  creation  ?  Would  the  various  wants  and  facul- 
ties of  the  soul  find  their  full  gratification  in  such  exer- 
cises ?  Is  this  man's  proper  t';///'/<sy'w^'«/.^  So  far  from 
it,  the  individual  who  should  make  it  the  regular  busi- 
ness of  his  life,  would  justly  be  regarded  as  insane. 

Besides,  what  use  would  be  subserved  by  it,  if  cn- 
V 


322 


HE.  1 1  -EN  KK  I  -EA  L  ED. 


gaged  in  as  a  regular  occupation  ?  Would  the  growth 
of  charity  or  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  society  be 
thereby  promoted  ?  And  whatever  does  not  tend  to 
this  end,  cannot  be  really  useful.  God  does  not  desire 
our  prayers  or  praises  on  his  own  account.  He  desires 
them  solely  for  our  good.  He  knows  them  to  be  a  means 
of  opening  our  souls  to  the  influx  of  his  love  and  wis- 
dom, and  of  helping  us  to  obey  more  implicitly  the  pre- 
cepts which  require  us  to  love  and  do  good  to  our 
neighbor. 

And  does  any  one  believe  that  a  person's  own  happi- 
ness or  growth  in  the  heavenly  graces,  would  be  pro- 
moted by  making  oral  prayer  and  psalm-singing  the 
business  of  his  life?  Let  the  best  man  living  devote 
himself  steadily  and  exclusively  to  this  for  a  single 
week,  and  the  languor,  listlessness  and  meptal  torpor 
thereby  induced  before  the  close  of  this  brief  period, 
would  seem  to  him  anything  but  heavenly  delight. 
They  would  convince  him  that  he  was  doing  violence 
to  his  better  nature — sinning  against  the  laws  of  his  spir- 
itual being. 

Acts  of  formal  worship  may  be  (we  are  told,  are)  oc- 
casionally engaged  in  by  the  angels  ;  and  these  exercises 
are,  in  heaven  as  on  earth,  a  means  of  spiritual  improve- 
ment. But  they  cannot  be  the  regular  employment 
there,  unless  man's  spiritual  constitution  is  totally 
changed  in  the  other  world — a  presumption  not  war- 
ranted by  reason  or  Scripture.  For  man  has  many  fac- 
ulties and  wants  besides  those  which  find  their  gratifi- 
cation in  acts  of  formal  worship.  Each  of  these  facul- 
ties has  a  definite  mode  of  action,  seeks  its  gratification 


IVORF^:  IN  HEAVEN. 


in  its  own  way.  And  they  are  wants  and  faculties  of 
the  soul,  and  must  therefore  exist  so  long  as  the  soul 
exists.  And  if  these  faculties  do  not  find  their  chief 
gratification  in  prayer  and  sacred  song  here,  neither  will 
they  there.  If  this  would  not  be  useful  as  an  occupation 
on  earth,  what  reason  is  there  for  believing  it  would  be 
in  heaven  ?  If  it  would  not  promote  men's  happiness 
here,  why  should  it  be  the  chief  source  of  happiness 
there?  And  if  those  who  should  make  it  their  sole  oc- 
cupation on  earth  would  be  regarded  as  insane,  what, 
then  (if  it  be  the  chief  employment  of  the  angels),  would 
heaven  be  but  a  vast  assemblage  of  lunatics  ? 

Similar  remarks  will  apply  with  even  more  force  to 
the  other  ideas  which  Christians  have  entertained  about 
life  in  heaven.  In  the  light  of  to-day,  they  are  all  seen 
to  be  most  unreasonable  and  absurd.  Not  one  of  them 
will  stand  the  test  of  a  rational  examination.  Sitting 
upon  thrones,  feasting  daintily  with  the  patriarchs,  walk- 
ing idly  in  golden  streets,  dwelling  luxuriously  in  pal- 
aces of  regal  splendor — none  of  these  things  can  confer 
real  happiness,  because  none  of  them  can  adequately 
supply  the  soul's  varied  wants.  And  if  it  is  desirable 
to  have  correct  views  on  the  subject,  it  is  to  the  same 
extent  desirable  that  some  further  revelation  respecting 
it  be  vouchsafed. 

Turn  now  to  the  disclosures  made  through  Sweden- 
borg;  and  see  if  they  are  as  unreasonable  as  the  beliefs 
which  have  hitherto  prevailed.  He  tells  us  first,  that 
there  are  innumerable  occupations  in  heaven,  every  one 
there  having  some  useful  work  to  do,  for  which  lie  is 
constitutionally  fitted,  and  which  he  takes  delight  in 


3-4 


HE  A  I  ^EN  KE  VEA  L  ED. 


doing.  No  one  can  be  happy  or  be  in  heaven  without 
being-  actively  employed.  But  work  there  is  never  fa- 
tiguing, as  it  often  is  on  earth.  It  is  the  free,  spontane- 
ous and  healthy  exercise  of  the  faculties ; — is  all  joyous 
and  delightful  like  the  dearly-loved  plays  of  children. 

"  There  are,"  says  Swedenborg,  "  so  many  offices  and 
administrations  in  heaven,  and  so  many  employments 
also,  that  it  is  impossible  to  enumerate  them  on  account 
of  their  great  number.  Those  in  the  world  are  compar- 
atively few.  All,  how  many  soever  there  be,  are  in  the 
delight  of  their  occupation,  and  labor  from  the  love  of 
use,  and  no  one  from  the  love  of  self  or  gain.  Nor  is 
any  one  influenced  by  the  love  of  gain  for  the  sake  of 
maintenance,  because  all  the  necessaries  of  life  are  given 
them  gratis, —  their  habitations,  garments  and  food. 
From  these  considerations  it  is  evident  that  they  who 
have  loved  themselves  and  the  world  more  than  use, 
have  no  lot  in  heaven.  For  every  one's  own  love  or 
affection  remains  with  him  after  his  life  in  the  world, 
nor  is  it  extirpated  to  eternity." — -H.  H.  n.  393. 

And  we  are  further  told  that  every  one's  happiness  in 
heaven,  is  in  proportion  to  the  importance  of  the  use 
he  performs  there,  and  to  the  affection  and  earnestness 
with  which  he  devotes  himself  to  it. 

"  Every  one  in  heaven  is  remunerated  according  to 
the  excellence  of  his  use,  and  at  the  same  time  accord- 
ing to  his  affection  of  use.  No  one  that  is  idle  is  there 
tolerated,  no  slothful  vagabond,  no  indolent  boaster  of 
the  studies  and  labors  of  others ;  but  every  one  must 
be  active,  skilful,  attentive  and  diligent  in  his  own  office 
and  business,  and  must  place  honor  and  reward  not  in 
the  first  but  in  the  second  or  third  place.  According  to 
these  circumstances  there  is  an  influx  among  them  of 
necessaries,  of  the  useful  things  of  life,  and  of  the  de- 


WORK-  IN  HEA  VEN. 


lightful  things  of  life.  .  .  The  necessaries  of  hfe,  which 
are  given  gratis  by  the  Lord  and  which  exist  in  a  mo- 
ment, are  food,  clothing  and  habitation,  which  altogether 
correspond  to  the  use  in  which  the  angel  is  ;  the  useful 
things  arc  those  which  are  subservient  to  these  three 
things,  and  are  a  delectation  to  him,  besides  various 
things  for  the  table,  for  garments,  and  in  the  house, 
beautiful  according  to  the  use,  and  shining  according  to 
its  affections;  the  delightful  things  are  those  which  are 
enjoyed  with  the  conjugial  partner,  with  friends,  with 
companions,  with  all  by  whom  he  is  loved,  and  whom 
he  himself  loves.  From  every  affection  of  use  proceeds 
that  love  which  is  mutual  and  reciprocal." — A.  E.,  Vol. 
vi.,  p.  353- 

But  the  Bible,  we  are  told,  speaks  of  the  righteous 
after  death  as  resting  from  their  labor."  How  is  this 
language  to  be  understood,  and  how  is  its  teaching  to 
be  reconciled  with  that  of  the  passage  just  quoted  ?  We 
will  let  Swedenborg  himself  answer  this  question,  or 
rather  one  of  the  wise  ones  he  encountered  in  the  other 
world.  On  a  certain  occasion  three  new  comers  from 
our  earth,  who  had  imbibed  many  erroneous  ideas  about 
heaven,  and  among  others,  that  all  active  occupation 
would  there  cease,  were  led  about  by  a  wise  elder,  and 
shown  various  things  which  astonished  them.  At  length 
"  they  were  led  in  the  city  [called  Athenaeum]  to  the 
rulers,  administrators,  and  their  subordinate  officers,  and 
by  the  latter  to  the  wonderful  specimens  of  workmanship 
which  *are  made  in  a  spiritual  manner  by  the  artificers." 
And  the  narrative  proceeds  : 

"After  these  were  seen,  the  elder  man  again  spoke 
with  them  concerning  the  eternal  rest  from  labors,  into 
28 


326 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


which  the  blessed  and  happy  come  after  death,  and  said  : 
Eternal  rest  is  not  idleness,  since  from  idleness  is  languor, 
torpor,  stupor,  and  deep  sleep  of  the  mind,  and  thence 
of  the  whole  body  ;  and  these  are  death  and  not  life,  and 
still  less  eternal  life  in  which  the  angels  of  heaven  are. 
Wherefore  eternal  rest  is  a  rest  which  dispels  these,  and 
causes  man  to  live;  and  this  is  nothing  else  but  such  as 
elevates  the  mind.  It  is  therefore  some  study  and  work 
by  which  the  mind  is  excited,  vivified  and  delighted; 
and  this  is  done  according  to  the  use  from  which,  in 
which,  and  to  which  it  operates.  Hence  it  is  that  the 
entire  heaven  is  regarded  by  the  Lord  as  containing 
uses ;  and  every  angel  is  an  angel  according  to  use. 
The  pleasure  of  use  carries  him  on,  as  a  favorable  stream 
does  a  ship,  and  causes  him  to  be  in  eternal  peace  and 
in  the  rest  of  peace.  Thus  is  understood  eternal  rest 
from  labors." — C.  L.  n.  207. 

And  many  Christians  of  our  day,  especially  such  as 
are  gifted  with  much  spiritual  insight,  have  come  to  the 
same  conclusion  without  the  help  of  Swedenborg, — so 
completely  do  his  disclosures  about  life  in  heaven  accord 
with  the  dictates  of  reason  and  common  sense.  How 
entirely  in  agreement  with  the  above  extract,  is  the  fol- 
lowing, for  example,  by  the  author  of  that  remarkable 
discourse,  "  Religion  in  common  Life,"  which  has  been 
so  widely  circulated : 

"  The  true  '  Rest '  of  the  soul  is  that,  not  of  Inactivity, 
but  of  Congenial  Exertion.  Labor  is  rest  to  the  active  and 
energetic  spirit.  To  not  a  few  minds,  congenial  activity, 
eager,  absorbing, all  but  incessant,  is  the  element  in  which 
they  find  repose.  And  the  ardent  and  enthusiastic  soul, 
conscious  of  power,  and  delighting  in  work  that  calls  it 
forth,  will  sometimes  seem  to  enjoy  perfect  serenity  only 
in  the  whirl  of  occupation,  as  the  bird  on  the  wing,  in 


WORK  IN  HEAVEN. 


the  flow  of  joyous  strength,  while  it  cleaves  the  air  at 
fullest  speed,  yet  seems  as  if  at  rest,  poised  on  its  out- 
spread pinions. 

"  For  it  is  to  be  remembered  that  the  toil  that  is  un- 
felt  is  no  toil ;  and  the  exercise  of  the  mind's  faculties 
on  congenial  objects,  is  not  only  unaccompanied  by  any 
irksome  sense  of  toil,  but  is  attended,  and  probably,  were 
it  not  for  the  necessity  of  using  gross  material  organs, 
would  ever  continue  to  be  attended,  with  positive  delight. 
Fatigue,  waste,  exhaustion,  belong  only  to  matter  and 
material  organization.  The  mind  itself  does  not  waste 
or  grow  weary,  and  but  for  the  weight  of  the  weapons 
wherewith  it  works,  it  might  think,  and  imagine,  and 
love  on  forever.  Even  with  all  its  present  drawbacks, 
a  spirit  of  great  power  and  energy,  so  far  from  resting, 
frets  and  feels  ill  at  ease  in  inactivity.  To  it  inaction  is 
unrest  and  torture — no  work  so  hard  as  doing  nothing. 
Only  in  the  putting  forth  of  its  energies,  in  the  evolution 
of  its  inward  power,  in  the  devotion  of  thought  and  feel- 
ing to  congenial  pursuits,  does  it  find  itself  tranquil,  un  - 
burdened, at  rest." — Cainl's  Sermons,  pp.  251,  '2. 

Swedcnborg  further  tells  us  that  the  diligent  applica- 
tion of  the  mind  to  some  useful  employment  from  a 
principle  of  neighborly  love,  is  an  essential  condition  of 
happiness  in  the  realms  above  ;  and  that  no  one  can  have 
experience  of  the  joys  of  heaven  without  such  applica- 
tion, since  the  interiors  cannot  otherwise  be  opened  to 
the  Divine  life,  the  influ.x  of  which  is  the  cause  of  all 
true  joy.  He  relates  the  following  as  instruction  given 
by  the  angels  themselves  to  certain  novitiates  who  had 
recently  entered  the  spiritual  world  : 

"  The  delight  of  use  arising  from  love  through  wis- 
dom, is  the  life  and  soul  of  all  heavenly  joys.  In  the 
heavens  there  are  most  joyful  consociations,  which  ex- 


328 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


hilarate  the  minds  of  the  angels,  fill  their  bosoms  with 
pleasure,  and  recreate  their  bodies  ;  but  not  until  they 
have  performed  uses  in  their  functions  and  employments. 
P'rom  these  uses  is  the  soul  or  life  of  all  their  joys  and 
delights.  And  if  this  soul  or  life  be  taken  away,  acces- 
sory joys  gradually  become  no  joys,  exciting  first  of  all 
indifference,  then  disgust,  and  lastly  sorrow  and  anxiety." 
— C.  L.  n.  5. 

"  There  is  a  certain  latent  vein  in  the  affection  of  the 
will  of  every  angel,  which  draws  his  mind  to  the  doing 
of  something  ;  and  by  this  the  mind  is  tranquillized  and 
made  satisfied  with  itself  This  tranquillity  and  satis- 
faction form  a  state  of  mind  capable  of  receiving  the 
love  of  uses  from  the  Lord;  from  the  reception  of  this 
love  is  heavenly  happiness  which  is  the  life  of  the  joys 
mentioned  above.  Heavenly  food  in  its  essence  is  noth- 
ing else  but  love,  wisdom  and  use  together ;  that  is,  use, 
by  wisdom,  from  love.  Wherefore  food  for  the  body  is 
given  to  every  one  in  heaven  according  to  the  use  which 
he  performs ;  magnificent  to  those  who  are  in  eminent 
uses;  moderate,  but  of  exquisite  relish,  to  those  who  are 
in  uses  of  a  middle  degree;  and  ordinary  to  such  as  are 
in  ordinary  uses;  but  none  to  the  indolent." — Ibid.  n.  6. 

"  Learn  what  is  meant  by  kings  and  princes,  and  reign- 
ing with  Christ;  that  it  is  to  know  and  do  uses ;  for  the 
kingdom  of  Christ,  which  is  heaven,  is  a  kingdom  of 
uses.  For  the  Lord  loves  all,  and  thence  wills  good  to 
all.  But  good  is  use ;  and  because  the  Lord  does  good 
or  uses  mediately  by  the  angels,  and  in  the  world  by 
men,  so  to  them  who  faithfully  do  uses  He  gives  the 
love  of  use  and  its  reward  which  is  internal  blessedness, 
and  this  is  eternal  happiness.  There  are  in  the  heavens 
as  in  the  earth,  supcreminent  dominions  and  the  richest 
treasures ;  for  there  are  governments  and  forms  of  gov- 
ernment, and  thus  there  arc  greater  and  less  powers  and 
dignities.    For  tho.se  of  the  highest  rank,  are  palaces 


IVORK  nv  HEA  VEN. 


and  courts  which  exceed  in  magnificence  and  splendor 
those  of  emperors  and  kings  on  earth,  and  honor  and 
glor}'  flow  around  them  from  the  number  of  their  at- 
tendants, ministers  and  guards,  and  from  their  magnifi- 
cent vestures.  But  they  who  have  the  highest  rank  are 
selected  from  those  whose  hearts  are  in  the  pubHc  wel- 
fare, and  who  are  only  as  to  the  senses  of  the  body  in 
the  fullness  of  magnificence  for  the  sake  of  obedience. 
And  because  it  is  for  the  public  welfare  that  every  one 
should  be  of  some  use  in  society  as  in  a  common  body, 
and  because  all  use  is  from  the  Lord,  and  is  done  through 
angels  and  through  men  as  if  by  them,  it  is  plain  that 
this  is  to  reign  with  the  Lord." — C.  L.  n.  7. 

"There  are  three  things  which  flow  as  one  from  the 
Lord  into  our  minds ;  these  are  love,  wisdom  and  use. 
But  love  and  wisdom  do  not  exist  unless  ideally,  when 
only  in  the  affections  and  thoughts  of  the  mind;  but 
they  exist  really  in  use,  because  they  are  simultaneously 
in  act  and  bodily  work ;  and  where  they  exist  really, 
there  they  also  subsist.  And  because  love  and  wisdom 
exist  and  subsist  in  use,  it  is  use  which  affects  us  ;  and 
use  is  faithfully,  sincerely  and  diligently  to  perform  the 
works  of  one's  office.  The  love  of  use,  and  therefrom 
a  fixed  attention  to  use,  hold  the  mind  together,  so  that 
it  may  not  flow  forth  and  dissipate  itself,  and  wander 
about,  and  drink  in  all  the  lusts  which  flow-in  from  the 
body  and  the  world  through  the  senses,  with  their  al- 
lurements, by  which  the  truths  of  religion  and  morality 
with  all  their  goods,  are  scattered  to  the  winds.  But  a 
studious  fixing  of  the  mind  upon  use,  holds  and  binds 
them  together  in  use,  and  disposes  the  mind  into  a  form 
receptive  of  wisdom  from  those  truths  ;  and  then  it  ex- 
terminates the  sports  and  mockeries  of  falsities  and  van- 
ities."— Ibid.  n.  16. 

"The  wise  ones  said:  Man  when  first  created  was 
imbued  with  wisdom  and  its  love,  not  for  the  sake  of 
28* 


330 


HEA  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


himself,  but  for  the  sake  of  its  communication  with 
others  from  himself  Hence  it  is  inscribed  on  the  wis- 
dom of  the  wise,  that  no  one  is  wise  or  lives  for  himself 
alone,  but  for  others  at  the  same  time.  Thence  is  soci- 
ety, which  otherwise  could  not  be.  To  live  for  others 
is  to  perform  uses.  Uses  are  the  bonds  of  society,  which 
are  just  as  many  as  there  are  good  uses,  and  the  number 
of  uses  is  infinite.  .  .  Moreover,  every  love  has  its  own 
pleasure,  for  by  this  love  lives  ;  and  the  pleasure  of  the 
love  of  uses  is  heavenly  pleasure,  which  enters  succeed- 
ing pleasures  in  order,  and  according  to  the  order  of 
succession  exalts  them  and  makes  them  eternal. 

"  After  this  they  enumerated  the  heavenly  delights 
proceeding  from  the  love  of  use,  and  said  that  they  are 
myriads  of  myriads,  and  that  they  who  are  in  heaven 
enter  into  them.  And  with  further  discourses  of  wisdom 
on  the  love  of  uses,  they  passed  the  day  with  them  until 
evening." — C.  L.  n.  i8. 

And  the  same  thing  in  substance  is  often  repeated  in 
his  writings.  In  the  light  of  these  disclosures  heaven 
is  seen  to  be  a  state  of  intense  activity.  Every  angel 
has  some  useful  occupation  which  he  loves,  and  in  the 
earnest  pursuit  of  which  he  finds  intense  delight.  With- 
out it,  he  could  not  really  know  what  heaven  is.  Its 
essential  con.stituents,  we  are  told,  are  love  and  wisdom; 
but  these  are  only  ideal  entities — mere  abstractions — 
until  determined  toward  and  embodied  in  works.  They 
have  no  real  existence  but  in  nse.    The  angels  say: 

"  Love  and  wisdom  without  use,  are  only  ideas  of  ab- 
stract thought,  which,  after  some  stay  in  the  mind,  pass 
on  as  winds ;  but  these  two  are  united  in  use,  and  there 
become  a  unit  which  is  called  a  real  thing.  Love  can- 
not be  easy  unless  it  is  doing,  for  it  is  the  veriest  active 
principle  of  life ;  neither  can  wisdom  exist  and  subsist 


WORK  IN  HEAVEN. 


except  it  be  doing  from  love  and  with  it ;  and  doing  is 
use.  Therefore  use  is  to  do  good  from  love  by  means 
of  wisdom.    Use  is  good  itself" — C.  L.  n.  183. 

Uses,  therefore,  or  love  and  wisdom  ultimated  and 
fixed  in  deeds,  are  the  essential  things  in  God's  kingdom. 
The  angelic  heaven  is  a  kingdom  of  uses,  and  every 
angel  is  a  form  of  some  particular  use.  Use,  moreover, 
is  the  containant  of  all  true  heavenly  life,  and  every 
angel  is  happy  according  to  the  nature  of  his  use,  and 
to  the  affection  and  earnestness  with  which  he  devotes 
himself  to  it. 

Such  is  Swedenborg's  uniform  teaching  on  this  sub- 
ject. Is  it  true  ?  is  the  next  and  vital  question  to  be 
considered. 

It  is  generally  conceded  that  God  is  the  one  infinite 
Source  of  life.  He  alone  is  Life  Itself  And  life  is  for- 
ever active.  Life  and  inaction  are  incompatible  ideas. 
The  two  cannot  coexist.  One  forbids  or  dissipates  tlie 
other,  as  surely  as  light  disperses  the  darkness.  God  is 
Life,  and  Life  is  inseparable  from  action.  Therefore  He 
never  has  ceased  and  never  can  cease  to  work.  He  not 
only  did  create,  but  is  forever  creating.  He  not  only  did 
make,  but  is  now  and  forever  making  men  in  his  own 
image  and  likeness;  yes,  and  making  worlds,  and  fitting 
them  for  the  abode  and  sustenance  of  human  beings. 
He  is  everywhere  and  always  working — always  creating 
and  preserving  ;  for  it  is  not  in  the  nature  of  Life  to  cease 
from  action.  This  is  a  central  truth.  As  saith  the  in- 
carnate Word :  "  My  Father  worketh  hitherto,  and  I 
work." 

Now,  as  He  from  whom  creation  sprang  is  forever 


332 


HE  A  VEN  RE  VEALED. 


present  in  his  own  works,  filling,  sustaining  and  direct- 
ing, therefore  something  of  his  own  activity  is  stamped 
on  all  things  which  have  been  touched  by  his  living 
breath,  from  the  great  orb  that  warms  and  enlightens 
us,  down  to  the  smallest  atom  that  quivers  in  his  beams. 
All  things  have  an  appointed  use,  a  specific  end  and  a 
determinate  mode  of  action,  because  something  of  the 
Divine  Love  and  Wisdom  is  in  them  all  as  their  guiding 
and  controling  power.  This  is  true  of  the  sun's  light 
and  heat,  of  the  air  we  breathe  and  the  earth  we  tread, 
as  well  as  of  everything  that  lives  and  grows  upon  it. 
The  smallest  grain  of  dust  is  the  containant  of  some- 
thing of  God's  wisdom  which  directs  it  to  its  appointed 
goal,  and  of  something  of  his  love  which  impels  it  to 
the  performance  of  its  allotted  work.  And  ascending 
to  the  realm  of  organic  matter,  the  activity  of  life  be- 
comes more  apparent.  There  is  life  of  a  low  order  in 
plants  and  trees ;  and  it  is  ever  at  work  there — ever 
busy  at  its  appointed  use.  When  its  vital  forces  are  so 
obstructed  that  their  activity  ceases  in  a  blade  of  grass 
or  the  limb  of  a  tree,  straightway  that  blade  or  limb 
withers  and  dies. 

Then  look  at  animal  life,  especially  as  manifested  in 
the  higher  orders.  It  not  only  courses  in  one  continu- 
ous current  through  their  veins  and  arteries,  imparting 
health  and  activity  to  each  separate  organ,  but  it  sets 
the  whole  animal  in  motion.  Each  creature  has  it-s 
sphere  of  use,  and  its  determinate  mode  of  action;  and 
both  its  action  and  its  use  are  according  to  the  nature 
of  its  life.  It  must  act  as  its  life  impels  it,  else  it  can- 
not enjoy  its  full  share  of  happiness,  health  or  content. 


IVOR  A'  IN  HEAVEN. 


333 


We  know,  too,  that  a  certain  amount  of  bodily  exer- 
cise is  indispensable  to  bodily  health.  Weakness  and 
infirmity  are  the  sure  consequences  of  inaction,  while 
exercise  promotes  health  and  vigor.  And  this  is  true 
alike  of  the  whole  body  and  each  of  its  component 
parts.  If  any  part  is  exercised  more  than  the  rest  (pro- 
vided the  exercise  is  not  carried  to  excess),  that  part  is 
sure  to  outstrip  the  others  in  strength  and  vigor.  Look 
at  the  blacksmith's  brawny  arm,  and  contrast  it  with  that 
of  one  who  has  left  that  limb  unexercised ! 

What,  then,  is  the  conclusion  to  which  we  are  forced 
by  the  analogies  of  nature  ?  Clearly  this  :  That  life  in 
heaven  must  be  one  of  intense  activity.  The  denizens 
of  the  celestial  realms  must  be  actively  and  usefully 
employed.  '  Nature  (and  this  is  but  the  lowest  plane  of 
the  Divine  activity)  in  all  her  kingdoms  is  a  vast  the- 
atre of  action,  and  of  action  tending  always  to  some 
useful  end.  Nothing  is  idle  here  ;  nothing  stands  still ; 
nothing  is  inactive.  Earth,  sun  and  stars  are  always  in 
motion.  The  air  and  the  ocean  pulsate  continually. 
They  have  their  tides,  their  eddies,  and  their  currents, 
and  through  ceaseless  activity  are  preserved  in  a  salu- 
brious condition.  And  the  multitudinous  forms  of  ani- 
mal life  all  have  a  determinate  mode  of  action  corre- 
sponding to  the  nature  and  use  of  each.  And  not  only 
is  activity  needed  to  the  health  and  comfort  of  each, 
but  indispensable  to  its  complete  development.  And  in 
the  healthy  condition  of  the  human  system,  how  active 
is  every  organ  and  every  minutest  part  of  it!  Although 
their  modes  of  action  and  the  uses  they  severally  per- 
form are  infinitely  various,  yet  they  are  mutually  adapt- 


334 


HE  A  VEN  RE  I  'EA  L  ED. 


ed  to  each  other,  and  work  together  in  admirable  har- 
mony. 

Life,  then,  under  all  its  innumerable  forms  on  earth, 
is  forever  active ;  and  everywhere  and  always  it  heis  a 
definite  mode  of  action  corresponding  to  its  nature  or 
quality.  Should  we  expect  it  would  be  less  active  in 
heaven  than  on  earth  ? 

But  we  have  proof  stronger  than  that  from  analogy, 
as  well  as  more  direct  and  positive.  We  know  some 
of  the  laws  that  govern  man's  psychical  nature,  and 
some  of  the  conditions  indispensable  to  his  happiness 
while  in  the  flesh.  And  one  is,  the  exercise  of  his 
mental  as  well  as  bodily  powers,  and  their  determina- 
tion toward  some  definite  object.  Activity  is  insepara- 
ble from  his  mental  constitution ;  and  if  his  activity  is 
not  guided  by  the  revealed  laws  of  neighborly  love,  he 
will  be  active  in  doing  Satan's  work — active  in  seeking 
his  own  aggrandizement,  and  in  cheating,  robbing  and 
spoiling  others.  And  this  misdirection  of  his  powers 
brings  sorrow  and  suffering  both  to  himself  and  his 
neighbor. 

Every  one  knows,  too,  that  the  idle  man  is  never  a 
happy  man.  The  soul  does  not  expand  but  collapses 
by  idleness.  It  does  not  grow  but  withers  under  it. 
Man  is  not  vivified  but  deadened  by  it.  It  is  only  by 
some  kind  of  occupation  requiring  the  exercise  of  our 
mental  powers,  that  the  mind  is  excited,  vivified  and  de- 
lighted (C.  L.  207).  The  most  unhappy  people  in  the 
world  are  those  who  have  no  regular  occupation,  and 
no  clearly  defined  purpose  in  life. 

But  it  is  essential  to  our  highest  happiness  here,  not 


irORK  IN  HEAVEN. 


335 


only  that  we  be  busily  but  usefully  occupied ;  and  that 
we  work  at  our  vocation  from  the  love  of  serving  or  of 
being  useful.  True  human  life  everywhere  has  respect 
to  other  beings  outside  of  itself,  and  will  ever  seek  to 
ultimate  itself  in  truly  human  acts.  It  is  the  love  of 
serving  or  doing  good  to  others — at  the  same  time  ac- 
knowledging the  Lord  as  the  source  of  this  love,  and 
of  the  disposition  and  power  to  do  good.  Because  this 
life  is  truly  human,  it  must  seek  to  ultimate  itself  in 
deeds  which  tend  to  promote  human  welfare.  If  a  man 
really  loves  his  neighbor,  and  knows  how  to  serve  and 
bless  him,  he  cannot  leave  the  service  unperformed  ;  if 
he  should,  his  neighborly  love  would  soon  depart.  True 
love  is  ever  active  in  doing  for  others.  Soon  as  it  ceases 
to  do — to  bless — it  ceases  to  be.  The  happiest  people 
in  the  world  are  those  most  actively  engaged  in  some 
useful  occupation,  and  who  work  from  the  love  of  ren- 
dering themselves  in  the  highest  degree  useful.  These, 
while  on  earth,  enjoy  a  foretaste  of  heaven.  They  re- 
ceive an  influx  of  heavenly  delights,  just  in  the  degree 
that  they  use  their  gifts  for  the  promotion  of  heavenly 
ends.  And  on  the  other  hand  the  goods  and  truths  of 
heaven  with  their  delights,  are  lost  or  taken  away  if  not 
used  for  the  benefit  of  the  neighbor.  The  Lord  plainly 
teaches  this  in  the  parable  of  the  talents.  They  who 
tiscd  \^\idX  was  committed  to  them,  gained  thereby  other 
talents,  and  were  pronounced  "  good  and  faithful  ser- 
vants"  worthy  of  an  entrance  into  the  joy  of  their 
Lord;  while  he  who  hid  his  talent,  or  neglected  to  use 
it,  lost  through  such  neglect  what  was  committed  to 
him,  and  was  declared  a  wicked  and  slothful  servant, 
worthy  only  to  be  cast  into  "  the  outer  darkness." 


336 


HE  A  VEM  RE  VEALED. 


This,  then,  is  an  everlasting  law — a  law  to  which  an- 
gels in  heaven  and  men  on  earth  are  alike  subject — that 
the  rich  treasures  of  the  heart  are  increased  by  being 
used,  and  diminished  if  not  used.  Nothing  is  more  cer- 
tain than  this.  The  more  we  exercise  patience,  the  more 
patient  we  become.  The  more  we  do  justly,  the  more 
are  our  hearts  imbued  with  the  love  of  justice.  The 
more  scrupulously  we  obey  the  laws  of  the  heavenly 
life,  the  more  delight  do  we  find  in  obeying  them,  and 
the  more  do  we  receive  of  the  spirit  of  those  laws.  The 
more  faithfully  and  unselfishly  we  devote  ourselves  to 
any  worthy  cause  or  useful  calling — the  more  we  give 
of  affection  and  thought  and  study  and  effort  to  the  up- 
building of  God's  kingdom,  the  more  is  our  affection  for 
the  things  of  that  kingdom  strengthened,  our  capacity 
for  receiving  them  enlarged,  and  the  freer  and  more 
abundant  is  their  influx.  Agreeable  to  these  words  of 
the  Lord  :  "  Give,  and  it  shall  be  given  unto  you."  Give 
love  and  sympathy,  and  your  love  and  sympathy  will 
increase.  Give  patience  and  kindness  and  tenderness  and 
generosity,  and  you  will  receive  a  larger  measure  of 
these  same  graces.  Exercise  courage,  and  you  will  grow 
more  courageous.  Do  justly,  and  your  sense  of  justice 
will  become  keener  and  your  love  of  justice  stronger. 
Practice  the  laws  of  the  heavenly  life,  and  fresh  incre- 
ments of  that  life  and  clearer  views  of  its  laws  will  flow 
into  your  soul  day  by  day.  The  more  you  do  to  en- 
lighten and  purify  and  bless  others,  the  more  of  the  light 
and  purity  and  unselfish  devotion  of  heaven  will  be 
poured  into  you  from  on  high.  As  saith  the  incarnate 
Word :  "  For  unto  every  one  that  hath  shall  be  given, 


WORK  IN  HE  A  VEN. 


337 


and  he  shall  have  abundance  ;  "  and  "  with  what  meas- 
ure ye  mete,  it  shall  be  measured  to  you  again."  There 
can  be  no  reception  of  the  heavenly  life,  without  the 
giving,  or  the  effort  to  give,  of  this  same  life, — that  is, 
without  the  exercise  of  the  heavenly  graces ;  and  the 
exercise  of  these  involves  the  performance  of  heavenly 
uses. 

Thus  do  reason,  analogy,  human  experience  and  Sa- 
cred Scripture  unite  to  prove  that  the  denizens  of  heaven 
must  be  actively  employed ;  and  since  they  are  all  hu- 
man, their  employments  must  be  human.  They  must 
be  such  employments  as  are  suitable  to  human  beings — 
such  as  proceed  from  and  agree  with  true  human  love. 
But  there  is  in  heaven  as  on  earth  an  endless  diversity 
of  character  and  state.  Therefore  we  should  expect  an 
endless  variety  of  occupations  there  as  here.  We  should 
expect  societies  and  individuals  to  have  such  occupations 
as  correspond  to  their  different  states.  Accordingly 
Swedenborg  says  : 

"  The  employments  of  heaven  are  innumerable,  and 
various  according  to  the  offices  of  the  societies.  Every 
society  performs  a  peculiar  office ;  for  as  the  societies 
are  distinct  according  to  goods,  so  are  they  also  accord- 
ing to  uses,  since  goods  with  all  in  heaven  are  goods  in 
act,  which  are  uses.  Every  one  there  performs  a  use, 
for  the  kingdom  of  the  Lord  is  a  kingdom  of  uses. 

"There  are,  in  heaven  as  on  earth,  various  adminis- 
trations ;  for  there  are  ecclesiastical  affairs,  civil  affairs 
and  domestic  affairs. 

"Ecclesiastical  affairs  in  heaven  are  under  the  charge 
of  those  who,  when  in  tlie  world,  loved  the  Word  and 
earnestly  sought  for  the  truths  which  it  contains,  not 
for  the  sake  of  honor  or  gain  but  for  the  sake  of  the  use 
29  W 


338 


nr.Avr.sT  revealed. 


of  life,  both  their  own  and  others.  These  are  in  illus- 
tration and  in  the  light  of  wisdom  in  heaven  according 
to  their  love  and  desire  of  use;  for  they  come  into  that 
light  in  heaven  from  the  Word,  which  is  not  natural 
there  as  in  the  world,  but  spiritual.  These  perform  the 
cfifice  of  preachers. 

"  Civil  affairs  are  administered  by  those  who,  while  in 
the  world,  loved  their  country  and  its  general  good  in 
preference  to  their  own  ;  and  did  what  is  just  and  right 
from  the  love  of  justice  and  rectitude.  Such  men  pos- 
sess capacity  for  administering  offices  in  heaven  in  pro- 
portion as  their  love  of  rectitude  has  prompted  them  to 
inquire  into  the  laws  of  justice,  and  thence  to  become 
intelligent.  The  offices  which  they  administer  corre- 
spond exactly  to  the  degree  of  their  intelligence;  and 
their  intelligence  is  tlicn  in  like  degree  also  with  their 
love  of  use  for  the  general  good." — H.  H.  n.  387,  '8,  '93. 

But  emploj'mcnts  in  heaven  are  not  the  same  as  they 
are  on  earth.  Here  they  are  for  the  most  part  natural ; 
but  in  heaven  they  are  altogether  spiritual.  And  be- 
tween natural  and  spiritual  employments  there  is  a  cor- 
respondence like  that  between  body  and  soul. 

"  The  correspondence  of  natural  with  spiritual  things, 
or  of  the  world  with  heaven,  is  effected  by  uses,  and 
uses  conjoin  them  ;  and  the  forms  with  which  uses  are 
clothed,  are  correspondences  and  mediums  of  conjunc- 
tion in  proportion  as  they  are  forms  of  use.  .  .  The  ac- 
tions of  man  are  uses  in  form,  and  are  correspondences 
whereby  he  is  conjoined  to  heaven,  so  far  as  he  lives 
according  to  divine  order. 

"Every  one  in  heaven  is  in  his  work  according  to 
correspondence;  and  the  correspondence  is  not  with  the 
work,  but  with  the  use  of  every  work.  He  in  heaven 
who  is  in  an  employment  or  work  corresponding  to  his 


WOKK'  IN  HEA  VEN. 


339 


use,  is  in  a  state  of  life  exactly  like  that  in  which  he  was 
in  the  world, — for  what  is  spiritual  and  what  is  natural 
act  as  one  by  correspondence, — but  with  this  difference: 
that  he  is  in  more  interior  delight,  because  in  spiritual 
life  which  is  interior  life,  and  hence  more  receptive  of 
heavenly  blessedness." — H.  H.  n.  II2,  394. 

The  employments  of  heaven  exceed  those  of  this 
world  in  number  and  variety  as  much  as  the  denizens 
of  heaven  outnumber  those  of  earth.  The  nature  of 
some  of  them  may  be  inferred  from  what  is  said  of  the 
various  administrations  there ;  and  some  are  specifically 
mentioned. 

"  There  are  societies  whose  employments  consist  in 
tak'ing  care  of  infants ;  there  are  other  societies  whose 
employments  are  to  instruct  and  educate  them  as  they 
grow  up ;  others  who  in  like  manner  instruct  and  edu- 
cate boys  and  girls  who  are  of  a  good  disposition  from 
education  in  the  world,  and  who  thence  come  into 
heaven ;  others  who  teach  the  simple  good  from  the 
Christian  world,  and  lead  them  in  the  way  to  heaven  ; 
others  who  perform  the  same  office  for  the  various  Gen- 
tile nations  ;  others  who  defend  novitiate  spirits, — those 
who  have  recently  come  from  the  world, — from  infesta- 
tions by  evil  spirits;  some  who  are  attendant  on  those 
in  the  lower  earth  ;  some  who  are  present  with  those  in 
hell,  and  restrain  them  from  tormenting  each  other  be- 
yond the  prescribed  limits;  and  some  who  attend  upon 
those  who  are  being  raised  from  the  dead. 

"  In  general,  angels  of  every  society  are  sent  to  men, 
that  they  may  guard  them,  and  withdraw  them  from 
evil  affections  and  consequent  evil  thoughts,  and  inspire 
them  with  good  affections  so  far  as  they  receive  them 
freely.  By  means  of  these  affections  also  they  rule  the 
deeds  or  works  of  men,  removing  from  them  evil  inten- 
tions as  far  as  possible.  .  ,  .  But  all  these  employments 


340 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


of  the  angels  are  functions  performed  by  the  Lord  through 
them  ;  for  they  perform  them  not  from  themselves,  but 
from  the  Lord. 

"  These  employments  of  the  angels  are  their  general 
employments.  But  to  each  one  is  assigned  his  particular 
use ;  for  every  general  use  is  composed  of  innumerable 
others  which  are  called  mediate,  ministering  and  sub- 
servient uses." — \\.  H.  n.  391. 

In  heaven  as  on  earth  some  employments  are  superior 
to  others  in  point  of  dignity  and  importance  ;  but  no  one 
there  arrogates  to  himself  the  dignity,  or  thinks  himself 
superior  to  others  because  of  the  superiority  of  his  use. 
Personally  the  angels  are  all  on  a  level  ;  and  they  never 
think  of  the  honor  and  dignity  of  any  use  as  belonging 
to  themselves,  but  to  the  Lord  alone,  from  whom  comes 
all  their  love  of  use,  and  their  ability  and  skill  in  its  per- 
formance. 

"  The  wiser  angels  take  charge  of  those  things  belong- 
ing to  the  general  good  or  use ;  and  the  less  wise,  of 
such  as  relate  to  particular  goods  or  uses ;  and  so  on. 
They  arc  subordinated  just  as  in  divine  order  uses  are 
subordinated.  Hence  also  dignity  is  attached  to  every 
employment  according  to  the  dignity  of  the  use.  No 
angel,  however,  arrogates  the  dignity  to  himself,  but  as- 
cribes it  all  to  the  use.  And  because  use  is  the  good 
which  he  performs,  and  all  good  is  from  the  Lord,  there- 
fore he  ascribes  it  all  to  the  Lord.  Wherefore  he  who 
thinks  of  honor  for  himself  and  thence  for  use,  and  not 
for  use  and  thence  for  himself,  cannot  perform  any  office 
in  heaven  ;  for  he  looks  backward  from  the  Lord,  regard- 
ing himself  in  the  first  place  and  use  in  the  second. 
When  use  is  spoken  of,  the  Lord  also  is  meant;  because 
use  is  good,  and  good  is  from  the  Lord. 

"  From  these  considerations  it  may  be  inferred  what 


WORK  IN  HEAVEN. 


subordinations  in  the  heavens  are  ;  namely,  that  as  every 
one  loves,  esteems  and  honors  use,  so  also  he  loves, 
esteems  and  honors  the  person  to  whom  that  use  is  ad- 
joined; and  also  that  the  person  is  loved,  esteemed  and 
honored  in  the  degree  that  he  does  not  ascribe  the  use 
to  himself,  but  to  the  Lord  ;  for  in  that  degree  he  is  wise, 
and  the  uses  which  he  performs  are  performed  from  a 
principle  of  good. 

"  Spiritual  love,  esteem  and  honor  are  nothing  else  than 
the  love,  esteem  and  honor  of  use  in  the  person  who 
performs  it ;  and  the  honor  of  the  person  is  from  the 
use,  and  not  that  of  the  use  from  the  person.  He  also 
who  regards  men  from  spiritual  truth,  regards  them  in 
no  other  way  ;  for  he  sees  that  one  man  is  like  another, 
whether  he  be  in  great  dignity  or  in  little;  that  they 
differ  only  in  wisdom,  and  that  wisdom  consists  in  loving 
use,  and  thus  in  loving  the  good  of  a  fellow-citizen,  of 
society,  of  the  country  and  of  the  church.  In  this  also 
consists  love  to  the  Lord,  because  all  good  which  is  the 
good  of  use,  is  from  the  Lord  ;  and  love  toward  the 
neighbor  also,  because  the  neighbor  is  the  good  which 
is  to  be  loved  in  a  fellow-citizen,  society,  the  country  and 
the  church,  and  which  is  to  be  done  to  them." — H.  H. 
n.  389,  '90. 

Look,  now,  at  the  practical  bearing  of  this  teaching. 
What  kind  of  influence  is  it  calculated  to  exert  on  the 
lives  of  those  who  accept  it?  The  teaching  briefly 
summarized,  is :  That  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  a  king- 
dom of  uses,  and  every  dweller  therein  is  a  form  of  use  ; 
that  no  one  can  experience  the  delights  of  heaven,  until 
there  is  developed  in  him  a  genuine  love  of  use;  that 
the  heavenly  inhabitants  are  all  actively  employed,  each 
in  that  particular  use  which  he  loves  and  is  constitu- 
tionally fitted  to  perform  best;  that  their  innumerable 
29* 


342 


HE  A  I  -EN  RE  J  'EAL  ED. 


employments  are  all  human — all  answering  the  demands 
of  true  human  love,  and  tending  to  the  advancement  of 
human  happiness ;  that  every  angel  does  his  appointed 
work,  not  from  any  selfish  end,  but  from  the  exquisite 
delight  he  finds  in  rendering  useful  service ;  and  that 
the  higher  the  use,  and  the  purer  the  love  that  one 
carries  into  its  performance,  and  the  more  earnestly 
he  devotes  himself  to  it,  the  more  exalted  and  abundant 
is  his  happiness. 

Now,  take  this  doctrine  along  with  that  other,  that 
each  one  carries  his  own  life  with  him  into  the  other 
world,  and  what  is  the  conclusion  ?  Why,  that  every 
person  who  would  enter  heaven,  must  first  become  a  form 
of  use  in  the  kingdom  of  God;  for  such  are  all  the  angels. 
He  must  diligently  cultivate,  and  to  some  extent  acquire 
while  here  on  earth,  the  love  of  use.  Every  believer  will, 
therefore,  seek  to  know  what  his  peculiar  powers  of  body 
and  mind  qualify  him  to  do  best;  and  that  he  will  do, 
thinking  less  of  personal  reward  than  of  the  use,  and  try- 
ing to  work  from  a  love  of  this  latter.  Thus  will  he  con- 
secrate to  USE — or,  what  is  equivalent,  to  the  service  of 
God — all  his  powers  of  body  and  mind.  He  will  study  to 
learn  the  highest  use  of  them  all,  and  will  regard  him- 
self merely  as  a  steward  bound  to  use  his  Master's  goods 
in  a  manner  most  agreeable  to  his  Master's  will.  He 
will  not  be  idle,  but  an  earnest  worker.  He  will  not 
ask.  What  shall  /gain  by  doing  this  or  that?  but  Will 
it  be  useful? — will  it  benefit  the  church,  the  community, 
the  country,  or  mankind?  He  will  not  inquire.  What 
occupation  will  bring  me  most  of  honor  or  emolument, 
but  what  one  do  my  gifts  of  body  and  mind  qualify  me 


wo  If  A'  nv  HE  A  TEA'. 


343 


to  perform  best?  For  he  will  see  that  every  occupa- 
tion which  is  useful,  is  honorable  and  praiseworthy  in 
the  sight  of  God,  so  it  be  honorably  performed. 

And  since  God  intended  that  all  men  should  be 
brethren,  therefore  there  is  a  mutual  dependence  and  a 
bond  of  brotherhood  among  the  innumerable  occupa- 
tions of  men,  from  that  of  the  monarch  on  his  throne 
or  the  president  in  his  chair  of  state,  down  to  the  hum- 
ble scavenger  and  sable  chimney-sweep.  They  are  all 
fraternally  allied — bound  together  like  the  innumerable 
parts  of  the  human  body.  Therefore  every  one  who 
labors  faithfully  in  his  calling,  should  be  respected  in 
his  use  and  according  to  his  use. 

The  belief  has  been  entertained  even  by  professed 
Christians,  that  labor  is  a  curse  inflicted  on  mankind  as 
a  penalty  for  the  transgression  of  the  first  human  pair; 
and  the  literal  sense  of  the  Bible  favors  this  idea.  Hence 
the  conclusion,  that  in  heaven  there  can  be  nothing  in 
the  nature  of  work,  since  the  curse  must  there  be  re- 
moved. Hence  also  the  idea,  hitherto  prevalent  even 
in  Christian  lands,  that  there  is  something  degrading 
and  servile  in  work  ;  and  that  they  are  the  special  favor- 
ites of  heaven,  whose  circumstances  relieve  them  from 
the  necessity  of  doing  any  kind  of  work, — as  if  idleness 
were  bliss. 

With  all  such  fantasies  the  doctrine  revealed  through 
Swedenborg  is  seen  to  be  directly  at  war.  Its  obvious 
tendency  is  to  exalt  and  dignify  all  useful  labor;  to 
make  industry  everywhere  honorable,  idleness  every- 
where contemptible.  It  shows  us  that  persons  who 
neither  have  nor  desire  any  useful  work,  are  living  a 


344 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


life  far  removed  from  that  of  heaven  ;  and  unless  they 
change  their  course,  and  try  to  be  of  some  use  in  the 
world,  they  will  never  reach  the  abodes  of  the  blessed. 
And  on  the  other  hand  it  shows  us  that  all  who  devote 
themselves  to  some  useful  occupation,  and  endeavor  to 
discharge  its  duties  with  religious  fidelity,  are  laying  up 
for  themselves  treasures  in  heaven.  They  are  offering 
to  God  the  most  acceptable  worship ;  for  how  can  we 
more  truly  glorify  our  Father  in  the  heavens,  than  by 
diligently  occupying  ourselves  about  our  Father's  busi- 
ness ? — employing  the  powers  bestowed  by  Him,  in 
serving  and  blessing  our  fellow  men? — luorking  under 
the  promptings  of  his  unselfish  love,  and  the  guiding 
light  of  his  revealed  wisdom  ?  "Herein  is  my  Father 
glorified,  that  ye  bear  much  fruit."  This — the  faithful 
performance  of  uses  from  the  love  of  use — is  regarded 
in  heaven  as  the  truest  worship. 

"  The  real  worship  of  the  Lord,"  says  Swedenborg, 
"  consists  in  performing  uses  ;  and  uses  consist,  during  a 
man's  life  in  the  world,  in  every  one  discharging  aright 
his  function  in  his  respective  station;  thus  in  serving 
his  country,  society,  and  his  neighbor,  from  the  heart, 
and  in  acting  with  sincerity  in  all  his  associations,  and 
in  performing  duties  prudently  according  to  the  quality 
of  each.  These  uses  are  principally  the  exercises  of 
charity,  and  those  whereby  the  Lord  is  principally  wor- 
shiped. Frequenting  the  temple,  hearing  sermons, 
and  saying  prayers  are  also  necessary  things;  but  with- 
out the  above  uses  they  avail  nothing,  for  they  are  not 
of  the  life,  but  teach  what  the  quality  of  the  life  should 
be.  The  angels  in  heaven  have  all  happiness  from  uses 
and  according  to  uses,  insomuch  that  uses  are  to  them 
heaven." — A.  C.  n.  7038. 


woj^A'  IN  heaven: 


345 


Can  we  conceive  of  any  doctrine  more  wholesome  in 
its  tendency,  or  more  eminently  practical,  than  this  ? 
It  points  us  to  a  life  of  active,  faithful,  self-forgetting  ser- 
vice, as  the  sure  pathway  to  the  realms  of  bliss  ;  and  tells 
us  that  all  who  hope  to  enter  there,  must  begin  on  earth 
to  tread  this  pathway, — begin  here  to  become  forms  of 
use  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  as  all  the  angels  are.  It 
adds  new  meaning  and  emphasis  to  the  words  of  one 
of  our  poets : 

"  Work — and  thou  shall  bless  the  day 

Ere  the  toil  be  done  ; — 
They  that  work  not  cannot  play, 

Cannot  feel  the  sun. 
God  is  living,  working  still ; 

All  things  work  and  move; 
Work,  wouldst  thou  their  beauty  feel, 

And  thy  Maker's  love.'' 

And  affirms,  as  an  absolute  certainty,  the  reasonable  con- 
clusion of  another,  who  sings  so  sweetly  the  truth  which 
every  gifted  child  of  song  cannot  fail  to  see — 

"  Surely  there  must  be  work  to  do  in  heaven. 

Since  work  is  the  best  thing  on  earth  we  know ; 
Life  were  but  tasteless  bread,  without  this  leaven — 
A  draught  from  some  dead  river's  overflow. 

"  Work  is  the  holiest  thing  in  earth  or  heaven  : 
To  lift  from  souls  the  sorrow  and  the  curse — 
This  dear  employment  must  to  us  be  given 
While  there  is  want  in  God's  great  universe. 

"  There  must  be  work  for  us  to  do  in  heaven, 

Else  that  were  a  less  blessed  place  than  this  : 
The  worthiest  impulse  to  our  earth-life  given, 
Must  still  be  felt  amid  celestial  bliss."  * 


*  Lucy  Larcuni  in  the  Cht  islian  Union  for  Oct.  9,  1S84. 


346 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


Let  this  New  doctrine  concerning  life  in  heaven  be 
generally  accepted,  and  become  thoroughly  imbedded 
in  the  popular  mind  and  heart,  and  what  a  stupen- 
dous change  in  human  society  would  speedily  be 
wrought !  Heaven  brought  down  to  earth  !  The  Fa- 
ther's will  done  here  below,  as  it  is  done  in  the  realms 
above !  What  activity,  contentment,  abundance,  har- 
mony, peace  and  joy  would  be  here!  Millions  of  hu- 
man beings  all  praising  God  by  the  diligent  and  loving 
performance  of  uses,  in  the  blessings  of  which  all  alike 
are  sharers ! 

Look  at  the  doctrine  in  a  practical  point  of  view,  and 
see  if  it  be  not  worthy  the  high  origin  claimed  for  it. 
Consider  what  must  be  its  legitimate  fruits,  and  judge 
it  by  this  divine  standard  ;  "  for  every  tree  is  known  by 
its  own  fruit."  Surely  a  doctrine,  the  obvious  tendency 
of  which  is  so  good  and  wholesome,  cannot  be  false,  nor 
can  it  have  emanated  from  the  darkness  of  the  abyss. 
For  it  bears  upon  its  front  the  very  signet  of  God,  the 
impress  of  his  unfathomable  love. 


XXVIL 

THE  THREE  HEAVENS,  AND  HOW  RELATED. 

THE  great  merit  of  Swedenborg's  pneumatology, 
and  that  which  entitles  it  to  the  serious  considera- 
tion of  all  thoughtful  people,  is,  that  it  is  based  on  the 
essential  nature  of  the  human  soul.  It  is  a  legitimate 
outgrowth,  as  we  have  shown  in  the  previous  chapters, 


THE  THREE  HEAVENS. 


347 


from  the  known  laws  of  our  mental  and  moral  constitu- 
tion. And  since  these  laws  are  all  God's  own,  and  as 
eternal  and  unchangeable  as  Himself,  therefore  any  sys- 
tem of  pneumatology  founded  upon  them,  is  founded 
upon  the  Rock  of  Ages,  and  will  endure  forever.  On 
the  other  hand,  any  system  which  is  not  so  based,  or  is 
not  the  normal  outgrowth  from  our  human  nature,  how- 
ever beautiful  it  may  be  as  a  fancy  sketch,  rests  on  a 
sandy  foundation,  and  sooner  or  later  is  sure  to  be  re- 
jected. 

We  have  seen  all  along  how  intimately  the  whole 
economy  of  the  spiritual  world  as  revealed  through  Swe- 
denborg,  links  itself  with  all  that  is  known  of  man's 
spiritual  and  immortal  part.  We  have  seen  that  his  dis- 
closures concerning  the  essential  nature  of  heaven,  its 
form  or  order,  its  social  arrangements,  its  employments, 
the  personal  appearance  of  its  denizens,  etc.,  are  in  strict 
accord  both  with  the  revealed  laws  of  the  heavenly  life 
and  the  implanted  instincts  and  potencies  of  our  human 
nature.  We  have  seen  that,  through  the  operation  of 
the  heavenly  life  within,  the  reported  order,  beauty  and 
perfection  of  the  heaven  without,  unfold  themselves  as 
naturally  and  necessarily  as  the  plant  unfolds  itself  from 
the  seed  or  the  flower  from  the  bud  under  the  influence 
of  a  vernal  sun.  And  this  becomes  more  apparent  and 
striking  the  farther  we  push  our  inquiries  into  the  abodes 
of  the  blessed  as  unveiled  by  the  Swedish  sage. 

We  come  now  to  consider  that  trinal  distinction  of 
the  angelic  heavens  of  which  Swcdenborg  so  often  socaks, 
to  inquire  into  the  grounds  and  origin  of  that  distinc- 
tion, and  endeavor  to  ascertain  if  it  has  any  solid  or 


348 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


scientific  basis  ;  in  other  words,  to  inquire  whether  his 
alleged  disclosure  on  this  point  is  true. 

Since  the  Lord  alone  is  Life,  and  the  only  source  of 
h'fc  to  angels  and  men,  therefore  He  is  the  all-in-all  of 
heaven.  But  in  Him  there  exists  a  trinal  distinction — 
a  trinity  of  divine  essentials.  These  are,  Divine  Love, 
Divine  Wisdom,  and  Divine  Operation  ;  called  by  Swe- 
denborg  the  Essential  Divine,  the  Divine  Human,  and 
the  Divine  Proceeding;  and  referred  to  in  the  New  Tes- 
tament by  the  terms  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Spirit.  We 
have  a  good  illustration  of  this  Divine  Trinity  in  the 
natural  sun,  the  three  essentials  of  which  are  heat,  light, 
and  their  proceeding  operation.  These  three  are  united 
in  the  sun,  and  are  its  essentials  ;  for  neither  of  them  can 
exist  apart  from  the  other  two.  This  illustration  is  per- 
fect; for  the  sun's  heat  corresponds  to  the  Divine  Love, 
its  light  to  the  Divine  Wisdom,  and  their  joint  operation 
to  the  sphere  of  the  Divine  Activity,  or  the  proceeding 
influence  of  the  Lord's  love  and  wisdom. 

And  as  man  was  created  in  the  Divine  image  and  like- 
ness, therefore  there  must  be  in  him  a  trinal  distinction 
imaging,  in  some  degree  at  least,  the  trinity  in  God, 
There  being  a  manifest  trine  of  essentials  in  the  Divine 
Being  from  whom  is  all  our  life,  there  must  of  necessity 
be  three  discrete  degrees  of  life  in  the  soul  which  is  the 
real  man.  And  as  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  within,  it 
follows  that  there  must  be  in  general  three  heavens  sep- 
arated by  discrete  degrees.  These  are,  we  are  told — 
and  this  is  precisely  as  it  should  be — related  like  end, 
cause,  and  effect,  or  like  Love,  Wisdom,  and  Operation 
(or  ijse)  in  the  Lord.    And  every  man  after  death  enters 


THE  THREE  HEAVENS. 


349 


-that  particular  heaven  which  has  been  previously  opened 
and  formed  in  him;  for  every  one  then  comes  into  the 
state  of  his  interiors,  or  into  the  enjoyment  of  just  that 
kind  of  Hfe  which  agrees  with  the  kind  of  truth  he  had 
received  and  religiously  obeyed.  If  only  the  lowest  form 
of  truth  has  been  received,  and  the  lowest  degree  of  his 
mind  opened,  he  enters  the  first  or  lowest  heaven.  If 
the  second  degree  of  his  mind  has  been  opened,  he 
enters  the  middle  or  second  heaven.  And  if  the  third 
degree  has  been  opened,  he  enters  the  third  or  highest 
heaven. 

Thus  the  heaven  which  each  one  will  enter  after  death, 
will  depend  upon  the  kind  or  degree  of  life  to  which  he 
has  attained,  or  upon  the  heaven  which  has  been  opened 
and  formed  within  him  during  his  sojourn  on  earth.  He 
cannot  then  receive  and  appropriate  a  higher  degree  of 
life,  and  therefore  cannot  enter  any  higher  heaven.  And 
in  any  lower  heaven  his  measure  or  degree  of  life  would 
not  be  full. 

We  thus  see  that  the  existence  of  three  angelic  heav- 
ens in  general  (there  are  innumerable  societies  in  each 
of  these  heavens),  follows  as  a  logical  conclusion  from 
the  existence  of  three  degrees  of  life  in  man.  And  these 
degrees  exist  from  the  trinity  in  God,  in  whose  image 
and  likeness,  the  Scripture  tells  us,  man  was  originally 
created.  Many  passages  might  be  cited  from  Sweden- 
borg  in  confirmation  of  what  we  have  here  said ;  but 
the  following  are  sufficient : 

"  There  are  three  heavens  quite  distinct  from  each 
other;  the  inmost  or  third,  the  middle  or  second,  and 
the  ultimate  or  first.    They  follow  in  order  and  are  mu- 
30 


350 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


tually  related  like  the  highest  part  of  man,  which  is 
called  the  head ;  his  middle,  which  is  the  body ;  and  the 
lowest,  which  is  the  feet.  .  .  The  Divine  which  proceeds 
and  descends  from  the  Lord  is  also  in  similar  order. 
Therefore,  from  the  necessity  of  order,  heaven  is  three- 
fold. 

"  The  interiors  of  man  are  also  in  similar  order.  He 
has  an  inmost,  a  middle  and  an  ultimate.  For  when  man 
was  created  all  things  of  divine  order  were  collated  into 
him,  so  that  he  was  made  divine  order  in  form,  and 
thence  a  heaven  in  miniature.  For  this  reason  also  he 
communicates  with  the  heavens  as  to  his  interiors,  and 
comes  among  the  angels  after  death  ;  among  those  of 
the  inmost,  middle  or  lowest  heaven,  according  to  his 
reception  of  divine  good  and  truth  from  the  Lord  during 
his  life  in  the  world. 

"  It  is  to  be  carefully  noted  that  the  interiors  of  the 
angels  are  what  determine  their  situation  in  one  or  the 
other  of  these  heavens;  for  the  more  their  interiors  are 
open  to  the  Lord,  the  more  interior  is  the  heaven  in 
which  they  dwell.  There  are  three  degrees  of  the  inte- 
riors with  every  one,  whether  angel,  spirit  or  man.  They 
with  whom  the  third  degree  is  open,  are  in  the  inmost 
heaven ;  they  with  whom  the  second  degree  is  open, 
are  in  the  middle  heaven;  and  they  with  whom  only 
the  first  degree  is  open,  are  in  the  lowest  heaven. 

"  The  interiors  are  opened  by  the  reception  of  divine 
good  and  divine  truth.  They  who  are  affected  with  di- 
vine truths,  and  admit  them  immediately  into  the  life, 
that  is,  into  the  will  and  thence  into  act,  are  in  the  in- 
most or  third  heaven,  and  are  situated  in  that  heaven 
according  to  their  reception  of  good  from  the  affection 
of  truth.  But  they  who  do  not  admit  them  immediately 
into  the  will,  but  into  the  memory  and  thence  into  the 
understanding,  and  from  that  will  and  do  them,  are  in 
the  middle  or  second  heaven.  While  they  who  live  a 
moral  life,  and  believe  in  a  Divine  Being,  and  care  but 


THE  THREE  HEAVENS. 


little  about  being-  instructed,  arc  in  the  lowest  or  first 
heaven. 

"  Hence  it  may  be  manifest  that  the  states  of  the  in- 
teriors make  heaven,  and  that  heaven  is  within  every- 
one and  not  without  him ;  as  the  Lord  also  teaches 
(Luke  xvii.  20,  21). 

"  All  perfection  also  increases  toward  the  interiors  and 
decreases  toward  the  exteriors  ;  because  interior  things 
are  nearer  the  Divine,  and  in  themselves  purer;  but  ex- 
terior things  are  more  remote  from  the  Divine,  and  in 
themselves  grosser.  .  .  Since  the  interiors  of  the  angels 
of  the  inmost  heaven  are  open  to  the  third  degree,  there- 
fore their  perfection  immensely  surpasses  that  of  the 
angels  of  the  middle  heaven,  whose  interiors  are  open 
to  the  second  degree.  In  like  manner  the  perfection 
of  the  angels  of  the  middle  heaven  surpasses  that  of  the 
angels  of  the  ultimate  heaven." — H.  H.  n.  29-34. 

"  It  is  known  that  there  are  three  heavens,  the  inmost, 
the  middle  and  the  ultimate,  or  the  third,  the  second 
and  the  first :  all  those  heavens  were  represented  by  the 
tabernacle.  .  .  The  reason  why  there  are  three  heavens 
is,  that  there  are  three  degrees  of  life  in  man  (for  man 
who  becomes  an  angel  after  death,  constitutes  heaven, 
nor  have  the  angels  or  the  heavens  any  other  origin) ; 
the  inmost  degree  of  his  life  is  for  the  inmost  heaven; 
the  middle  degree  of  life  for  the  middle  heaven  ;  and 
the  ultimate  for  the  ultimate  heaven.  And  since  man 
is  such,  or  so  formed,  and  heaven  is  from  the  human 
race,  therefore  there  are  three  heavens.  Those  degrees 
of  life  in  man  are  opened  successively;  the  first  degree 
by  a  life  according  to  what  is  equitable  and  just;  the 
second  degree  by  a  life  according  to  the  truths  of  faith 
from  the  Word,  and  according  to  the  goods  of  charity 
toward  the  neighbor  thence ;  and  the  third  degree  ac- 
cording to  the  good  of  mutual  love,  and  the  good  of 
love  to  the  Lord  :  these  arc  the  means  whereby  are  sue- 


352 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


cessively  opened  those  three  degrees  of  life  in  man,  thus 
the  three  heavens  in  him. 

"But  it  is  to  be  known  that  so  far  as  man  recedes 
from  good  of  hfe,  and  accedes  to  evil  of  life,  so  far  these 
degrees  are  closed,  that  is,  so  far  the  heavens  in  him  are 
closed  ;  for  as  the  good  of  life  opens  them,  so  evil  of  life 
closes  them  :  hence  it  is,  that  all  who  are  in  evil  are  out 
of  heaven,  that  is,  in  hell.  And  since  the  heavens  in 
man  are  successively  opened  according  to  the  good  of 
his  life,  as  was  said  above,  it  is  to  be  known  that,  on  this 
account,  in  some  the  first  heaven  is  opened  and  not  the 
second,  and  in  some  the  second  heaven  is  opened  and 
not  the  third  ;  and  that  the  third  heaven  is  opened  in 
those  only,  who  are  in  good  of  life  from  love  to  the 
Lord." — A.  C.  n.  9594.  See  also  A.  C.  n.  1642,  '7,  3691, 
5145,  9825,  10,130.  D.  L.  W.  n.  202,  236-9.  Influx 
n.  16. 

We  have  said  that  the  three  angelic  heavens  are  re- 
lated to  each  other  like  the  head,  trunk  and  extremities 
of  the  human  body.  The  same  is  sa-id  in  one  of  the 
above  extracts  ;  and  in  D.  L.W.  n.  202,  that  "  the  thoughts 
of  the  angels  of  the  highest  or  third  heaven  are  thoughts 
of  ends,  and  the  thoughts  of  those  of  the  middle  or 
second  heaven  are  thoughts  of  causes,  and  the  thoughts 
of  those  of  the  lowest  or  first  heaven  are  thoughts  of 
effects;"  thus  showing  the  three  heavens  to  be  related 
like  end,  cause  and  effect. 

Now  if  the  doctrine  concerning  the  human  form  of 
heaven  as  developed  in  a  previous  chajotcr  be  true,  it 
follows  as  a  logical  sequence  that  there  must  be  in  gen- 
eral three  heavens  related  like  head,  trunk  and  extrem- 
ities. Otherwise  the  whole  heaven  would  not  be  in  the 
human  form,  that  is,  not  in  true  human  order.  The 


THE   THREE  HEAVENS. 


353 


head  is  not  only  the  highest  part  of  the  body,  but  is  in 
every  respect  superior  to  the  other  parts.  It  is  the  part 
in  which  are  located  the  organs  of  sense,  whereby  the 
bodily  movements  are  determined  and  the  physical  life 
preserved.  Thus,  in  relation  to  the  other  parts  of  the 
body,  the  head  is  the  supreme,  guiding  and  directing 
organ.  Hence  in  every  larger  or  collective  man,  it  is 
usual  to  hear  the  supreme  and  directing  power  called 
the  head.  A  military  general  is  called  the  head  of  the 
army  because  he  plans  and  directs  its  movements.  So 
a  king  or  president,  with  his  constitutional  advisers,  is 
called  the  head  of  the  government;  and  his  cabinet 
officers  are  called  the  heads  of  the  several  departments 
of  the  government.  The  principal  teacher  in  a  school 
is  the  head  of  the  school ;  the  best  scholar  in  a  class  is 
the  head  of  his  class :  the  chief  owner  and  director  of  a 
factory  or  mercantile  firm,  is  the  head  of  the  establish- 
ment. 

Thus,  in  every  association  or  corporate  body  the 
member  which  is  invested  with,  or  acknowledged  as 
having,  the  right  to  direct,  is  called  the  head.  And  the 
fact  of  his  being  a  governing  or  directing  member,  im- 
plies that  he  is  ///  ends,  or  in  the  thought  of  ends.  And 
Swedenborg  tells  us  that  the  angels  of  the  highest  or 
third  heaven,  who  constitute  the  head  of  the  Grand 
Man,  are  in  the  thought  of  ends. 

But  what  can  the  head  of  an  individual  do  without 
the  body  and  extremities?  The  body  serves  as  the 
means,  and  the  extremities  are  the  servants  or  opera- 
tives. Thus  the  head,  through  the  intermediate  agency 
of  the  trunk,  sets  the  extremities  in  motion,  and  thereby 
30*  X 


354 


HE  A  VEN  KE  I  'EA  LED. 


accomplishes  the  ends  at  which  it  aims.  The  body  or 
trunk,  therefore,  viewed  in  relation  to  the  head,  is  seen 
to  be  a  means  or  secondary  cause  ;  and  the  act  of  the 
extremities,  tlirougli  this  means,  under  the  direction  of 
the  head,  is  the  effect.  Accordingly  Swedenborg  says 
that  the  angels  of  the  second  heaven,  who  form  as  it 
were  the  trunk  of  the  Grand  Man,  are  in  causes,  or  in 
the  thought  of  causes;  and  that  the  first  or  lowest 
heaven,  who  constitute  the  extremities  of  the  Grand 
Man,  are  in  effects,  or  in  the  thought  of  effects. 

We  thus  see  that  the  three  heavens,  connected  like 
the  head,  trunk  and  extremities  of  the  human  body,  and 
really  constituting  these  parts  of  the  Grand  Man  re- 
spectively, are  also  related  like  end,  cause  and  effect, 
— the  angels  of  the  highest  heaven  being  more  espe- 
cially in  ends,  those  of  the  middle  heaven  in  causes,  and 
those  of  the  lowest  in  effects.  And  every  individual 
viewed  spiritually,  is  a  miniature  of  the  Grand  Man,  and 
therefore  embodies  in  himself  the  same  trine  of  end, 
cause  and  effect.  He  aims  to  do  something — the  end. 
He  thinks  of  how  he  shall  do  it — the  cause.  And  the 
act  when  done,  is  the  effect. 

But  let  us  pursue  our  inquiry  a  step  further,  and  no- 
tice the  beautiful  and  striking  correspondence  between 
these  three  parts  of  the  body  and  the  three  angelic 
heavens.  • 

Looking  at  the  parts  more  interiorly,  we  find  that 
the  principal  contents  of  the  head  are  the  brain,  which 
is  the  most  refined,  delicate  and  sensitive  of  all  the  bod- 
ily tissues.  It  is  the  seat  of  sensation,  motion  and  life. 
It  is  the  great  centre  of  the  nervous  system,  under 


THE   THREE  HEAVENS. 


355 


whose  vital  influence  or  direction  as  it  were,  digestion, 
nutrition,  circulation,  and  all  the  functions  of  the  animal 
economy  are  carried  on.  Next  in  rank  and  office  are 
the  viscera  of  the  thorax  and  abdomen,  embracing  the 
whole  respiratory,  circulatory,  digestive  and  nutritive  ap- 
paratus. These  are  less  delicate  in  their  structure  than 
the  brain,  and  endowed,  so  to  speak,  with  a  lower  de- 
gree of  life.  They  include,  however,  all  the  means 
whereby,  under  the  direction  of  the  brain  and  nervous 
system,  the  various  tissues  are  supplied  with  their  ap- 
propriate nourishment  and  sustained  in  healthy  action. 
But  the  extremities  are  still  lower  in  rank,  farther  re- 
moved from  the  centre  of  life,  less  refined  and  less  deli- 
cate in  their  structure.  They  consist  for  the  most  part 
of  coarser  and  harder  materials,  such  as  bones,  muscles 
and  cartilages — yet  all  admirably  adapted  to  the  uses 
they  were  intended  to  perform. 

Now,  corresponding  precisely  to  these  relative  de- 
grees of  vitality,  refinement,  delicacy  of  structure,  etc., 
in  the  principal  constituents  of  these  three  parts  of  the 
body,  are  the  relative  degrees  of  life  enjoyed  by  the  an- 
gels of  the  three  heavens,  according  to  Swedenborg's 
disclosures.  For  he  says  that  the  angels  of  the  third 
or  highest  heaven,  who  are  also  the  most  interior,  are 
the  most  innocent  and  perfect,  and  in  the  highest  degree 
of  life,  because  spiritually  nearest  the  Lord,  the  Foun- 
tain of  life — that  is,  most  like  Him  ;  that  the  angels  of 
the  middle  heaven  who  arc  less  interior,  are  in  a  lower 
degree  of  good  and  truth,  less  perfect,  and  farther  re- 
moved from  the  Lord ;  and  that  those  of  the  lowest 
heaven  who  are  in  the  most  external  state,  are  still 


356 


IIEA  VKN  RE  I  -EALED. 


more  remote  from  the  Lord,  thus  in  a  lower  degree  of 
good  and  truth,  and  less  jjerfcct.  All  of  which  agrees 
with  the  universal  law  announced  in  these  words,  and 
often  repeated  by  Swedenborg : 

"  All  perfection  increases  toward  the  interiors,  because 
interior  beings  are  nearer  the  Divine  and  in  themselves 
purer;  but  exterior  things  are  more  remote  from  the 
Divine,  and  in  themselves  grosser." — H.  H.  34.  See 
also  A.  C.  1799,  3405,  5146,  '7- 

It  will  be  noticed,  too,  that  Swedenborg's  disclosures 
on  this  subject  are  in  perfect  agreement  with  the  apostle 
Paul's  testimony.  For  in  one  of  his  letters  to  the  Cor- 
inthian church  he  says  :  "  I  will  come  to  visions  and 
revelations  of  the  Lord.  I  knew  a  man  in  Christ  about 
fourteen  years  ago  (whether  in  the  body  I  cannot  tell, 
or  whether  out  of  the  body  I  cannot  tell :  God  know- 
eth) :  such  an  one  caught  up  to  the  third  heaven.  And 
1  knew  such  a  man  .  .  how  that  he  was  caught  up  into 
paradise,  and  heard  unspeakable  words  which  it  is  not 
possible  (oux  i|ov — see  Schleusner's  Greek  and  Latin  Lex- 
icon) for  a  man  to  utter  "  (2  Cor.  xii.  1-4). 

All  Christians,  therefore,  who  regard  the  testimony 
of  the  great  apostle  as  credible,  must  believe  that  there 
are  at  least  three  heavens.  And  we  may  remark  in  pass- 
ing, that  Swedenborg's  pneumatology  shows  us  how 
Paul  was  caught  up  to  the  third  heaven.  It  was  not  by 
any  elevation  through  natural  space,  for  heaven  is  not 
to  be  approached  in  that  way ;  but  by  the  opening  of 
the  third  or  highest  degree  of  his  mind,  together  with 
the  spiritual  senses  belonging  to  that  degree.  In  this 
way  he  had  a  vision  of  things  in  the  inmost  or  third 


THE  THREE  HEAVENS. 


357 


heaven,  not  knowing  whether  he  was  in  the  body  or  out 
of  it.  And  his  testimony  in  regard  to  the  unspeakable 
words  he  heard,  "  which  it  is  not  possible  for  a  man 
to  utter,"  is  in  perfect  agreement  with  Swedenborg's  re- 
veaHngs.  Concerning  the  speech  of  spirits  and  angels, 
he  says  : 

"The  speech  of  angelic  spirits  is  incomprehensible. 
.  .  But  the  speech  of  angels  is  ineffable,  far  above  that 
of  spirits  because  above  that  of  angelic  spirits,  and  not 
at  all  intelligible  to  man  so  long  as  he  lives  in  the  body. 

"  The  speech  of  the  celestial  angels  [those  of  the  third 
heaven]  is  distinct  from  that  of  the  spiritual  angels,  and 
is  still  more  ineffable  and  inexpressible.  .  .  It  is  much 
more  full  and  abundant,  for  they  are  in  the  very  foun- 
tains and  origins  of  the  life  of  thought  and  speech." — 
A.  C.  n.  143,  '5,  "7. 

But  every  angelic  society,  we  are  told,  when  viewed 
collectively,  appears  in  the  human  form,  which  is  the 
form  of  the  whole  heaven ;  "  because,  in  the  most  per- 
fect form  which  is  the  form  of  heaven,  the  parts  bear  a 
likeness  to  the  whole,  and  the  least  reflects  the  greatest." 
Consistently  with  this,  therefore,  there  should  be  a  trine 
in  each  of  the  angelic  heavens,  and  in  each  angelic  so- 
ciety, simulating  the  three-fold  division  of  the  whole 
heaven.    Accordingly  Swedenborg  says: 

"That  there  are  three  heavens,  is  a  known  thing; 
consequently  three  degrees  of  goods  and  truths  there. 
Every  heaven  also  is  distinguished  into  three  degrees, 
for  its  inmost  must  communicate  immediately  with  what 
is  superior,  its  external  with  what  is  inferior;  and  the 
middle  thus,  by  means  of  the  inmost  and  the  external, 
with  both;  hence  is  its  perfection.  The  case  is  similar 
with  the  interiors  of  man,  which  in  general  are  distia- 


358 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


guished  into  three  degrees,  viz.,  celestial,  spiritual  and 
natural ;  in  like  manner  each  of  these  into  its  three  de- 
grees;  for  the  man  who  is  in  the  good  of  faith  and  love 
to  the  Lord,  is  a  heaven  in  the  least  form  correspond- 
ing to  the  greatest;  so  in  all  things  of  nature.  .  .  Hence 
it  is  that  tlircc  in  the  Word  signifies  what  is  complete 
from  beginning  to  end." — A.  C.  n.  9825.  Also  A.  R.  876. 

"  All  in  heaven  are  collected  into  societies,  and  the 
societies  exist  in  vast  numbers,  and  each  society  in  its 
own  place  forms  three  heavens." — L.  J.  n.  27. 

And  this,  again,  may  be  seen  beautifully  illustrated  in 
the  human  body,  the  visible  image  of  the  order  of  heaven. 
For  every  muscle  in  the  body  is  a  bundle  of  fibres,  and 
each  of  these  fibres  is  a  collection  of  smaller  threads  or 
fibrillae.  Every  nerve  is  a  collection  ■  of  filaments,  each 
of  which  is  a  collection  of  still  smaller  fibres.  Every 
gland  is  a  congregation  of  smaller  glands,  and  each  of 
these  a  conglobation  of  others  still  more  minute.  And 
the  same  three-foldness  exists  throughout  all  the  king- 
doms of  nature.  First,  we  have  matter  existing  under 
three  distinct  forms,  viz.,  solids,  liquids,  and  gases — 
earth,  water,  and  air — separated  from  each  other  by  a 
discrete  degree.  Then  there  are  the  three  natural  king- 
doms, mineral,  vegetable,  and  animal.  And  each  of 
these,  again,  is  tri-partite.  The  animal  kingdom  is  dis- 
tinguished into  beasts,  birds,  and  fishes,  corresponding 
to  the  three  forms  under  which  matter  is  known  to  exist, 
and  respectively  inhabiting  the  three  elements,  earth, 
air,  and  water.  And  in  the  vegetable  kingdom  we  have 
grasses,  shrubs,  and  trees,  separated  also  by  discrete  de- 
grees. And  if  we  descend  from  generals  to  particulars, 
we  shall  everywhere  find  the  same  three-fold  order;  for 


THE   THREE  HEAVENS. 


359 


the  order  as  well  as  the  things  of  heaven,  are  distinctly- 
imaged  in  things  of  earth. 

"  Everything  in  the  world,"  says  Swedenborg,  "  pos- 
sessing the  three  dimensions,  or  called  composite,  is 
constituted  of  discrete  degrees."  And  "  although  the 
progress  of  end,  cause,  and  effect,  is  by  discrete  degrees, 
yet  of  these  degrees  little  or  nothing  is  known  in  the 
world." — D.  L.  VV.  n.  189,  '90. 

But  if  the  three  angelic  heavens  exist  in  accordance 
with  the  eternal  laws  of  divine  order,  having  their  foun- 
dation, as  we  have  said,  in  the  constitution  of  the  human 
soul,  why,  it  will  be  asked,  do  we  not  see  some  illus- 
tration of  this  doctrine  in  the  social  or  collective  as  well 
as  in  the  individual  man  here  on  earth?  There  can  be 
no  law  of  human  nature  so  deeply  implanted  as  to  de- 
termine the  angelic  heavens  into  one  or  another  form, 
which  does  not  manifest  itself  with  greater  or  less  dis- 
tinctness in  this  natural  sphere.  The  veil  of  flesh  which 
is  here  thrown  over  the  spirit,  is  not  sufficient  to  hide 
any  of  its  deep-seated  laws  or  fixed  determinations. 
The  same  law  which  draws  angels  of  like  character  into 
the  same  heavenly  society,  determines  people  everywhere 
on  earth  to  seek  the  companionship  of  those  most  like 
themselves.  And  so  with  all  biological  laws.  They 
exist  and  are  alike  operative  in  both  worlds,  the  natural 
and  the  spiritual.  Not  more  certainly  does  the  form  of 
the  eagle  while  yet  unfledged  and  in  its  shell,  point  to 
the  future  destiny  of  the  bird  and  the  element  in  which 
it  is  to  move,  than  do  the  laws  and  tendencies  of  our 
human  nature  as  manifested  in  the  flesh,  point  to  the 
general  order  and  arrangement  of  that  world  which  is  to 
be  our  final  home. 


36o 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


What  is  there,  then,  in  the  larger  or  collective  man,  in 
the  arrangements  of  human  society  here  on  earth,  that 
foreshadows  the  trinal  order  of  the  angelic  heavens  ? 
If  we  look  at  bodies  of  people,  such  as  kingdoms,  states, 
towns,  or  smaller  companies  organized  for  the  perform- 
ance of  some  special  use,  what  do  wc  see  ?  In  the  most 
advanced  civilization  (for  it  is  here  that  we  are  to  look 
for  the  fullest  development  and  best  illustration  of  bio- 
logical laws)  we  see  in  all  these  organized  bodies,  three 
distinct  classes  operating  in  as  many  distinct  spheres, 
and  requiring,  for  the  due  performance  of  their  respec- 
tive duties,  different  kinds  of  knowledge,  or  different 
orders  of  natural  truth,  yet  all  working  together  simul- 
taneously, the  will  and  wisdom  of  each  uniting  with  that 
of  the  others  in  the  final  result.  These  three  classes 
are  the  principals,  the  agents,  and  the  operatives.  The 
principals  are  in  the  thought  of  cuds.  They  have  the 
direction,  decide  what  shall  be  done,  and  set  the  others 
to  doing  it.  Thus  they  represent  the  head,  and  afford 
an  illustration  of  the  third  or  highest  heaven  whose  den- 
izens are  in  ends,  or  in  the  thought  of  ends.  The  agents 
are  in  the  thought  of  means  or  causes.  They  know  how 
the  intention  of  the  principals  is  to  be  executed.  They 
know  what  to  do,  and  how  to  do  it,  in  order  that  the 
end  aimed  at  may  be  accomplished.  Thus  they  repre- 
sent the  trunk,  and  afford  an  illustration  of  the  middle 
heaven  whose  denizens  are  said  to  be  in  causes,  or  the 
thought  of  causes.  And  the  operatives  are  in  the  thought 
of  effects.  Their  knowledge  is  more  limited  than  that 
of  the  others — limited  to  doing,  or  knowing  lumi  to  do, 
what  their  superiors  direct.    They  are  mere  obediences 


THE  THREE  HEAVENS. 


361 


— instruments  in  the  hands  of  others.  Thus  they  repre- 
sent the  extremities,  the  hands  and  feet,  which  are  moved 
by  the  body  under  the  direction  of  the  head ;  and  they 
are  as  necessary  to  the  completeness  of  this  larger  or 
collective  man,  as  the  hands  and  feet  are  to  the  com- 
pleteness of  the  individual.  We  have  in  this  class,  there- 
fore, an  illustration  of  the  first  or  lowest  heaven,  whose 
denizens  are  described  by  Swedenborg  as  mere  "  obedi- 
ences," and  are  said  to  be  in  the  thought  of  effects. 

To  see  how  naturally  and  necessarily  people  arrange 
themselves  into  this  triple  order  in  an  advanced  state 
of  society,  we  will  take  a  case  by  way  of  illustration. 
Let  us  look  at  a  country  as  a  single  individual  in  larger 
form.  A  government  is  therein  instituted  for  a  definite 
purpose.  And  when  duly  organized  and  its  machinery 
is  in  successful  operation,  what  do  we  find?  One  class 
of  men  whose  special  function  it  is  to  conceive,  plan  and 
direct  in  the  affairs  of  state,  and  who  therefore  consti- 
tute its  head.  And  in  well-organized  governments  this 
head  must  consist  of  a  deliberative  and  an  executive 
department — a  law-making  and  a  law-executing  power 
— functions  corresponding  perfectly  to  those  of  the  cer- 
ebrum and  cerebellum  in  the  head  of  every  individual. 
This  head  of  the  government  or  state,  too,  is  in  the 
thought  of  ends.  It  conceives,  plans,  points  out,  directs. 
It  decides  what  the  country  will  do ;  when  it  will  go  to 
war  and  when  make  peace ;  when  and  where  it  will  pur- 
chase or  sell  territory;  what  foreign  nations  it  will  hold 
intercourse  with,  and  what  it  will  not ;  when  and  where 
it  will  erect  fortifications,  improve  harbors,  construct 
lighthouses,  negotiate  treaties,  make  internal  improve- 
31 


362 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


ments,  etc.,  etc.  It  is  this  organized  head,  therefore, 
which  sets  the  country  in  motion,  and  decides  wliat  it 
shall  do.    Tlius  it  is  manifestly  in  ends. 

Next  to  the  head  or  supreme  class  in  this  organized 
body,  the  state,  we  have  another  class  who  act  as  agents. 
They  do  not  consider  the  wisdom  or  expediency  of  what 
the  head  decides  to  do.  This  is  no  part  of  their  busi- 
ness. Therefore  they  have  no  need  of  the  knowledge 
requisite  for  settling  such  questions.  But  they  know 
how  to  execute  the  intentions  of  those  above  them — 
how  to  accomplish  the  objects  at  which  the  head  aims. 
They  consist  of  all  those  officials  who  are  appointed  as 
agents  in  executing  the  designs  of  government,  such 
as  postmasters,  collectors  of  customs,  civil  engineers, 
army  and  navy  officers,  superintendents  of  national 
works,  etc.  This  class  are  obviously  in  the  thought  of 
causes  or  means,  having  the  knowledge  of  lioiv  to  ac- 
complish the  ends  which  their  superiors  (the  head)  con- 
ceive and  desire. 

But  this  class  of  officials  do  not  perform  the  manual 
labor  that  is  necessary  before  the  intentions  of  the  head 
are  ultimated.  They  do  not  sort,  stamp  and  distribute 
the  letters;  they  do  not  weigh,  gauge  and  measure  the 
imports  ;  they  do  not  carry  the  chain,  arrows,  compass, 
or  theodolite;  they  do  not  shoulder  the  musket  nor 
wheel  the  artillery  ;  they  do  not  handle  the  brick  or 
trowel.  But  another  class  come  in  here,  whose  knowl- 
edge is  more  limited  than  that  of  cither  of  the  other  two, 
and  who  are,  therefore,  lower  in  the  scale  of  natural  in- 
telligence. They  have  not  that  reach  of  mental  vision 
which  belongs  to  the  first  or  highest  class,  nor  that  su- 


THE  THREE  IIEAVEXS. 


pei'intending  and  commanding  talent,  or  that  engineering 
knowledge  and  skill  which  belong  to  the  second  class. 
They  do  not  know  why  a  country  needs  a  fortress  here 
or  there,  nor  have  they  the  knowledge  or  skill  in  mili- 
tary fortifications,  which  would  qualify  them  to  superin- 
tend its  construction.  They  are  mere  artisans,  with  less 
of  mental  (but  possibly  more  of  physical)  ability  than 
either  of  the  other  classes.  Though  unable  to  plan  or 
engineer  a  fortification,  they  understand  masonry  and 
can  lay  brick  and  stone  better  than  either  of  the  classes 
above  them. 

And  so  with  all  the  operatives  who  perform  the  work 
assigned  them  by  the  agents  of  government  in  each  of 
its  several  departments.  They  are  verily  the  hands  of 
this  organic  body,  which,  set  at  work  and  directed  by 
the  intermediate  class  or  tntjik,  execute  the  plans  which 
the  head  conceives  and  desires  to  have  executed.  And 
the  work  when  completed  is  the  product  of  the  joint 
labor  of  these  three  classes  who  sustain  to  each  other 
the  relation  of  principals,  agents,  and  operatives — high- 
est, middle,  and  lowest — head,  trunk,  and  extremities — 
end,  cause,  and  effect.  And  as  the  end  flows  through 
the  cause  into  the  effect  (which  is  the  everlasting  law  of 
influx),  or  as  the  head,  by  means  of  the  body,  puts  the 
extremities  in  motion,  so  this  first  class,  by  means  of  the 
second,  set  the  third  or  operatives  at  work;  and  the 
combined  knowledge  and  labors  of  the  three  are  exhib- 
ited in  the  final  result,  which  is  the  ultimate. 

And  wherever,  in  an  advanced  stage  of  society,  a 
work  of  any  magnitude  is  to  be  done — as  the  construc- 
tion of  a  railroad,  the  building  of  a  ship,  the  erection 


3^4 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


of  a  temple  or  factory — the  whole  body  of  men  engaged 
in  it,  will  always  be  found  distributed  into  three  classes 
holding  to  each  other  the  relation  of  end,  cause,  and 
effect.  Which  shows  that  the  trinal  distinction  of  the 
angelic  heavens  as  disclosed  by  Swedenborg,  is  no  fan- 
ciful or  arbitrary  division,  but  one  founded  on  the  very 
constitution  of  the  human  soul,  and  growing  legitimately 
out  of  it.  As  there  is  a  trinal  distinction  in  the  Divine 
Being,  and  three  degrees  of  life  in  every  soul,  related 
like  end,  cause,  and  effect,  so  we  find  in  every  larger  or 
collective  man  on  earth,  three  corresponding  degrees 
similarly  related.  The  conclusion,  therefore,  seems  easy 
and  natural — yea,  irresistible — that  there  must  be  three 
discrete  degrees  of  life  in  heaven,  consequently  three 
heavens ;  and  three  discrete  degrees  of  good  and  truth 
in  the  Sacred  Scripture,  suited  to  the  wants  or  states  of 
these  three  heavens  respectively.  So  solid  and  secure 
is  the  foundation  on  which  this  doctrine  of  the  three 
angelic  heavens  rests. 


XXVIIL 
ETERNAL  PROGRESS  LN  HEAVEN. 

THAT  change  of  mind  and  heart  whereby  a  man  is 
delivered  from  the  bondage  of  selfish  and  worldly 
loves,  and  brought  under  the  dominion  of  love  to  the 
Lord  and  the  neighbor,  is  called  regeneration.  It  is 
the  soul's  birth  into  a  higher  life,  even  the  heavenly. 
It  is  not,  however,  a  sudden  but  a  gradual  and  progres- 


ETERNAL  ER  OCR  ESS  IN  HEAVEN. 


sivc  change,  like  all  truly  divine  operations.  It  goes  on 
during  the  whole  period  of  man's  pilgrimage  on  earth. 
"There  is,"  says  Swedenborg,  "no  determinate  period 
of  a  man's  regeneration,  in  which  he  m.ay  say,  '  now  I 
am  perfect;'  for  there  are  innumerable  states  of  e\nl 
and  falsity  with  every  man  ...  all  of  which  must  be 
so  entirely  shaken  off  as  to  no  longer  appear."  (A.  C. 
n.  894.)  And  it  is  clear  that  these  states  cannot  be  all 
changed  in  a  moment.  Selfishness  cannot  be  eradicated 
or  thoroughly  subdued,  and  disinterested  love  implanted 
in  the  heart,  in  an  hour.  Character  is  neither  formed 
nor  changed  suddenly.  It  is  a  thing  of  slow  and  grad- 
ual growth,  like  the  progress  from  infancy  to  manhood. 
The  kingdom  of  heaven  cannot  be  instantly  established 
and  built  up  in  any  soul.  It  is  always  exceeding  small 
at  first — like  a  grain  of  mustard  seed  ;  but  it  gnnvs  un- 
til it  becomes  a  tree,  so  that  the  birds  may  build  their 
nests  in  the  branches  thereof  It  is  subject  to  the  same 
divine  law  that  governs  all  living  things — the  law  of 
development,  growth,  progress. 

And  here  the  question  naturally  arises.  Does  this  law 
of  progress  exist  in  heaven  as  well  as  on  earth  ?  Is 
there  with  the  angels  anything  in  the  nature  of  spiritual 
improvement  or  growth  ? — Anything  like  a  progressive 
advancement  toward  higher  and  more  perfect  states  of 
life?  The  following  is  Swedcnborg's  answer  to  this 
question  : 

"  Regeneration,  or  the  implantation  of  heavenly  life 
in  man,  commences  from  his  infancy  and  continues 
even  to  the  close  of  life  in  this  world,  and  after  death  it 
goes  on  perfecting  forever ;  and  what  is  a  secret,  man's 
3«* 


366  HEAVEN  REVEALED. 

regeneration  in  the  world  is  only  a  plane  for  the  per- 
fecting of  his  life  to  eternity." — A.  C.  n.  9334. 

"  The  arcana  of  regeneration  are  innumerable  and 
scarcely  at  all  known  to  man  ;  for  the  man  who  is  prin- 
cipled in  good,  is  reborn  every  moment  from  his  ear- 
liest infancy  to  the  last  period  of  his  life  in  the  world, 
and  afterwards  to  eternity." — Ibid.  5202. 

"The  angels  are  being  continually  perfected  by  the 
Lord ;  yet  they  can  never  be  perfected  to  such  a  degree 
that  their  wisdom  and  intelligence  can  be  compared 
with  the  divine  wisdom  and  intelligence  of  the  Lord." 
— Ibid.  4295. 

"  While  the  church  is  being  established  in  man,  he  is 
in  truths,  and  by  means  of  them  good  grows;  but  when 
established,  he  is  then  in  good,  and  from  good  in  truths 
which  in  this  case  grow  continually.  The  growth  is, 
indeed,  small  during  his  life  in  the  world,  because  ob- 
structed by  cares  for  food  and  raiment  and  other  things  ; 
but  in  the  other  life  it  is  immense,  and  this  perpetually 
to  eternity;  for  the  wisdom  which  is  from  the  Divine 
has  no  end.  Thus  the  angels  and  all  who  become  an- 
gels when  they  come  into  the  other  life,  are  perfecting 
continually;  for  everything  of  wisdom  is  of  infinite  ex- 
tension, and  the  things  of  wisdom  arc  infinite  in  num- 
ber; hence  it  may  be  clearly  seen  that  wisdom  is  capa- 
ble of  growth  to  eternity." — Ibid.  6648.  See  also  A.  C. 
n.  894,  1941,  i6io,  5122,  7541,  8325,  8426,  4803,  10,048. 

Extracts  similar  to  the  foregoing  might  be  greatly 
multiplied.  What  is  here  quoted  is  Swedenborg's  uni- 
form teaching  on  this  subject ;  nowhere  in  his  writings 
do  we  meet  with  anything  contrary  to  this. 

Now,  it  must  be  conceded  that  there  is  something  in 
the  doctrine  here  enunciated,  which  produces  an  agree- 
able impression  upon  the  mind  on  its  first  announce- 


F.TF.RXAL  PROGRESS  IN  HEAVEK.  367 

ment.  It  is  a  doctrine  which  we  cannot  help  wishing, 
at  least,  might  be  true.  It  chimes  in  with  every  one's 
fondest  hopes  and  noblest  aspirations.  Our  highest  con- 
ception of  heaven  demands  for  its  full  realization,  that 
it  should  be  a  state  of  never-ending  progress  in  knowl- 
edge, wisdom  and  love.  And  as  soon  as  we  begin  to 
look  at  the  subject  from  a  rational  point  of  view,  the 
reasons  multiply  for  believing  that  what  is  here  an- 
nounced, and  is  in  such  complete  accord  with  the  high- 
est hopes  of  all  enlightened  minds,  must  indeed  be  true. 

For,  what  reasonable  objection  can  be  urged  against 
the  doctrine  ?  What  is  to  hinder  eternal  progress  in  the 
realms  above  ?  There  surely  is  ample  room  for  it.  There 
is  only  One  Infinite  and  absolutely  perfect  Being.  Com- 
pared with  Him,  what  are  the  highest  angels  in  respect 
to  love  and  wisdom  ?  Less  than  the  fire-fly's  tiny  spark 
compared  with  the  sun's  majestic  blaze.  The  angels 
themselves  perceive  and  acknowledge  that  all  the  love 
and  wisdom  they  possess  is  momentarily  received  from 
the  Lord  ;  and  without  such  perception  and  acknowledg- 
ment, they  would  not  be  in  heaven  —  would  not  be 
angels. 

There  is,  then,  spiritually  speaking,  an  infinite  distance 
between  the  Lord  and  the  angels.  And  the  latter  may, 
therefore,  go  on  advancing  forever  tozvard  the  Divine 
perfections,  yet  never  reach  them — never  become  abso- 
lutely perfect.  And  as  every  increase  in  love  and  wis- 
dom is  accompanied  by  a  corresponding  increase  of  hap- 
piness, therefore  the  happiness  of  the  denizens  of  heaven 
(assuming  that  the  doctrine  here  announced  is  true),  will 
continue  to  increase  throughout  the  endless  ages. 


368 


HE  A  VEN  RE  J  EALED. 


Eternal  progress,  then,  is  clearly  among  tlic  possibili- 
ties of  the  angelic  state  ;  and  this  may  be  taken  as  pre- 
sumptive evidence,  at  least,  that  the  doctrine  is  true. 
For  the  Lord's  essential  nature  is  such  that  He  must 
forever  desire  to  draw  all — angels  as  vi^ell  as  men — to 
Himself  His  will  toward  all  his  children  must  be,  that 
they  continually  "  go  on  unto  perfection," — continually 
approximate  the  Divine  likeness.  And  if  such  be  his 
will,  STjch  is  virtually  his  command  to  the  angels;  and 
such  a  command  implies  the  capability  of  endless  prog- 
ress. 

Furthermore,  progress  is  everywhere  an  indispensable 
condition  of  the  highest  happiness.  We  must  not  for- 
get that  angels  are  human  beings.  They  are  all  in  the 
human  form,  and  were  once  inhabitants  of  the  natural 
world.  They  are  all,  therefore,  gifted  with  human  facul- 
ties which  are  subject  to  fixed  laws.  Now  it  is  well 
known  that  progress  is  an  essential  condition  of  the 
highest  happiness  on  earth.  However  learned,  wise  and 
good  a  person  may  be,  the  consciousness  of  having  at- 
tained the  utmost  limit  of  human  perfection,  and  of  ina- 
bility to  receive  any  increase  of  knowledge,  wisdom  or 
love,  while  knowing  that  there  exist  degrees  of  excel- 
lence infinitely  beyond  his  present  attainments, — this 
would  be  a  serious  draw-back  to  his  happiness.  A  per- 
son of  very  moderate  attainments,  if  conscious  of  a  steady 
increase  in  wisdom,  and  of  possessing  the  capacity  for 
unlimited  progress,  would  be  much  happier  than  he  who 
had  attained  a  far  higher  spiritual  eminence,  but  knew 
that  all  further  progress  was  denied  him.  If  heaven  were 
an  unprogressive  state,  therefore,  it  would  be  wanting  in 


ETERXAL  PROGRESS  IN  HEAVEN. 


one  of  the  conditions  which  we  know  to  be  essential  to 
people's  highest  happiness  on  earth.  Indeed  we  can 
hardly  conceive  of  the  angels  as  being  very  happy,  if  the 
capacity  for  still  higher  human  excellence  were  denied 
them.  Certainly  the  angelic  state  would  be  less  happy 
without  than  xvitli  the  condition  of  eternal  progress. 

Tlje  truth  of  this  doctrine  may  be  further  argued  from 
the  intense  activity  which  exists  in  heaven.  Wherever 
there  is  life,  there  is  activity;  and  the  higher  the  life, 
the  more  intense  the  activity.  And  it  is  an  eternal  law 
that  all  our  human  powers — our  intellectual  and  moral 
faculties  not  less  than  our  bodily  organs — are  expanded 
and  strengthened  by  exercise.  The  man  who  daily  ex- 
ercises his  powers  of  memory,  reasoning,  calculation  or 
analysis  for  a  considerable  length  of  time,  finds  that  he 
thereby  comes  to  remember,  reason,  calculate  or  analyze 
with  ever-increasing  facility.  These  faculties  arc  im- 
proved by  exercise.  So  with  the  moral  feelings.  A 
person  who  exercises  himself  habitually  in  deeds  of 
kindness,  grows  more  and  more  kind.  The  more  one 
practises  the  laws  of  charity,  the  more  he  comes  to  love 
these  laws,  and  the  more  charitable  he  grows.  The  more 
we  sympathize  with  the  unfortunate  and  sorrowing,  the 
more  tender  and  sympathetic  we  become.  And  on  the 
other  hand,  by  the  unrestrained  indulgence  of  our  lower 
propensities — our  pride,  avarice,  conceit  and  love  of  self 
— the  more  proud,  avaricious,  conceited  and  selfish  we 
become  through  such  indulgence. 

Nothing,  indeed,  is  more  certain  than  that  all  the 
powers  of  the  intellect  and  all  the  dispositions  of  the 
heart  are  strengthened  by  exercise.  And  the  more  they 
Y 


370 


HE  A  I  'EN  RE  VEA  LED. 


are  exercised  (provided  there  be  no  excess),  the  more 
does  their  strength  increase.  There  is  no  exception  to 
this  law.  And  since  it  is  a  law  of  mind,  it  must  exist 
wherever  finite  minds  exist, — for  bodily  death  works  no 
change  in  the  laws  of  our  mental  constitution.  The  mind 
is  the  man — the  real  person  in  human  form.  This  is 
immortal,  and  its  laws  are  unalterable.  Whatever  laws, 
therefore,  arc  known  to  govern  the  mind  or  spirit  when 
clothed  with  flesh,  will  surely  govern  it  in  the  great 
Hereafter. 

Now,  the  angels  being  all  images  and  likenesses  of  the 
Lord,  must  reflect  in  some  measure  the  light  of  his  wis- 
dom and  the  warmth  of  his  love.  They  love  others 
better  than  themselves;  therefore  it  is  their  delight  to 
communicate  of  their  love  and  wisdom  to  others.  Such 
being  their  character,  their  highest  and  noblest  faculties 
arc  being  brought  into  constant  exercise.  Their  love 
of  wisdom  impels  them  to  the  fullest  exertion  of  their 
intellectual  faculties,  and  their  love  of  each  other  finds 
its  appropriate  exercise  in  continued  deeds  of  kindness 
and  of  use.  And  if  the  powers  of  the  intellect  and  the 
dispositions  of  the  heart  are  strengthened  and  improved 
by  exercise,  what  then  should  result  from  the  constant 
exercise  of  these  powers  and  dispositions  in  heaven  ? 
What,  but  continual  growth,  expansion,  improvement  ? 
—  continual  increase  of  heavenly  riches?  —  continual 
progress  toward  perfection  ? 

And  this  doctrine  has  also  the  support  of  holy  Scrip- 
ture. Thus  in  the  parable  of  the  talents,  it  is  said  that 
those  servants  who  used  (traded  with)  their  talents,  did 
thereby  increase  them — gained  besides  them  two  and  five 


ETERXAL  PROGRESS  IN  IIEAVEiV. 


talents  more ;  while  he  that  received  but  one  talent,  in- 
stead of  using,  buried  it  in  the  earth,  did  thereby  lose 
all  that  was  given  him.  By  which  we  are  plainly  taught, 
that  the  spiritual  gifts  bestowed  by  our  Divine  Master, 
are  increased  by  being  properly  used;  while,  if  we 
neglect  to  use  them — neglect  the  healthful  exercise  of 
our  God-given  powers — fail  to  practise  the  revealed  laws 
of  heavenly  charity,  wc  lose  at  length,  through  such 
neglect  and  failure,  the  inclination  and  power  to  use 
them.  We  show  ourselves  unprofitable  servants,  unwor- 
thy the  powers  or  gifts  bestowed.  Hence  that  Divine 
decree:  "  Take  therefore  the  talent  from  him  and  give 
it  unto  him  who  hath  ten  talents.  For  unto  every  one 
that  hath  shall  be  given,  and  he  shall  have  abundance ; 
but  from  him  that  hath  not,  shall  be  taken  away  even 
that  which  he  hath." — Matt.  xxv.  28,  '9. 

Yes:  The  sure  and  everlasting  law  is,  that  heavenly 
treasures  increase  with  the  using.  Heavenly  dispositions 
and  feelings  are  strengthened  by  exercise.  Heavenly 
wisdom  increases  in  proportion  as  the  laws  of  the  heav- 
enly life  are  religiously  obeyed.  In  respect  to  spiritual 
things,  therefore,  it  is  given  to  every  one  according  as 
he  gives ;  in  other  words,  according  as  he  iiscs  the  gifts 
that  God  has  bestowed  on  him  ;  agreeable  to  the  Lord's 
own  words  :  "  Give,  and  it  shall  be  given  unto  you  ;  good 
measure,  pressed  down,  shaken  together  and  running 
over,  shall  they  give  into  your  bosom."  When  we  ex- 
ercise the  graces  of  heaven,  we  impart  unto  others  of 
our  spiritual  gifts  ;  and  by  the  very  act  of  imparting,  our 
souls  are  opened  to  a  fuller  reception  of  the  same  gifts 
and  graces.    This  is  one  of  the  laws  of  our  spiritual 


372 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


life.  It  must,  therefore,  be  a  law  of  life  with  the  angels, 
who  are  simply  human  beings  in  a  more  advanced  stage. 
And  since  they  never  desire  any  good  merely  for  them- 
selves, but  are  ever  willing  and  anxious  to  communicate 
their  delights  to  others,  therefore  they  must  be  contin- 
ually receiving  fresh  increments  of  love  and  wisdom 
from  the  Lord,  and  their  progress  must  be  unending. 

Besides,  there  isatwo  fold  progress — progress  through 
growth  or  the  maturing  of  graces  already  acquired,  and 
progress  from  the  increase  or  multiplication  of  goods 
and  truths.  Every  spiritual  truth  dropped  into  an  hon- 
est heart,  is  as  a  seed  sown  in  good  ground.  It  springs 
up,  and,  if  properly  cared  for,  grows  to  maturity,  and  in 
due  time  brings  forth  fruit — the  golden  fruit  of  charity. 
And  this  fruit  contains  the  seeds  of  new  truths,  which, 
falling  into  the  same  good  ground,  spring  up  and  bear 
fruit,  "some  thirty,  some  sixty,  and  some  a  hundred- 
fold." And  so,  through  the  multiplication  of  truths  and 
the  fructification  of  goods,  the  mind  of  a  regenerate 
man  (and  the  same  is  true  of  an  angel)  becomes  like  a 
beautiful  garden  adorned  with  all  manner  of  trees,  flow- 
ers and  fruits,  ever  increasing  in  fertility  and  beauty,  and 
in  the  number,  variety  and  richness  of  its  products. 
Tliis  is  the  true  paradise  of  God.  This  is  the  real  mean- 
ing of  that  garden  which  it  is  said  the  Lord  God  planted 
eastward  in  Eden,  and  wherein  He  "caused  to  grow 
every  tree  that  is  pleasant  to  the  sight  and  good  for  food  ; 
the  Tree  of  Life  also  in  the  midst  of  the  garden."  And 
now,  as  in  the  most  ancient  times.  He  places  in  this 
garden  every  Adam  whom  He  recreates  in  his  own 
image  and  likeness,  when  He  breathes  into  him  the 


ETERNAL  PROGRESS  IN  HEAVEN. 


373 


breath  of  true  spiritual  life,  and  makes  him  a  living 
soul. 

The  Lord  himself  teaches  in  the  parable  of  the  sower, 
that  seed  has  a  spiritual  signification.  "  The  seed,"  He 
says,  "  is  the  Word  ;  "  and  the  Word  is  divine  truth. 
And  when  the  truth  falls  into  humble  and  honest  minds, 
and  is  received,  understood  and  obeyed,  the  seed  is  said 
to  fall  upon  good  ground.  "  He  that  received  seed  into 
the  good  ground,  is  he  that  heareth  the  Word,  and  un- 
derstandeth  it;  which  also  beareth  fruit,  and  bringcth 
forth,  some  an  hundred-fold,  some  sixty,  some  thirty." 

"  With  a  man  who  is  principled  in  love  and  charity," 
says  Swedenborg,  "  seed  from  the  Lord  is  so  fructified 
and  multiplied  that  it  cannot  be  numbered, — not  so 
much  during  his  life  in  the  body,  but  incredibly  in  the 
other  life.  For  while  man  lives  in  the  body,  the  seed  is 
in  corporeal  ground  and  among  underbrush  and  thickets 
which  are  scientifics  and  gross  pleasures,  also  cares  and 
anxieties.  But  when  these  things  arc  cast  off,  as  is  the 
case  when  he  enters  the  other  life,  the  seed  is  freed  from 
them  and  shoots  forth,  as  the  seed  of  a  tree  when  it 
springs  out  of  the  ground,  shoots  forth  into  a  shrub  and 
then  into  a  large  tree,  and  is  afterwards  multiplied  into 
a  garden  of  trees.  For  all  knowledge,  intelligence  and 
wisdom,  with  their  delights  and  felicities,  are  thus  fruc- 
tified and  multiplied,  and  in  this  manner  grow  to  eter- 
nity."— A.  C.  n.  1941. 

If  in  heaven,  therefore,  there  exist  the  precious  seeds 
of  truth,  and  the  still  more  precious  fruits  of  charity, 
there  must  be  a  perpetual  multiplication  of  truths  and 
fructification  of  goods  in  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the 
angels ;  and  this  implies  eternal  progress. 

Analogy  also  lends  additional  support  to  the  truth  of 
32 


374 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


this  doctrine.  All  organic  forms  on  earth  enjoy  but  a 
transitory  life.  They  are  born,  they  grow  to  maturity, 
they  die.  But  until  they  arrive  at  maturity,  their  state 
is  one  of  constant  progress.  They  are  continually  ad- 
vancing with  greater  or  less  rapidity,  continually  increas- 
ing in  strength,  continually  unfolding  new  beauties  and 
capabilities.  This  goes  on  until  the  period  of  full  ma- 
turity is  reached.  Then  decay — and  decay  is  but  another 
term  for  death — commences.  This  is  the  case  with  every 
plant,  tree,  animal,  and  even  with  man  considered  in 
respect  to  his  material  organism.  Death  is  not  sudden 
but  gradual  when  it  takes  place  in  an  orderly  way.  It 
is  the  conclusion  of  a  process,  the  whole  of  which  from 
beginning  to  end  is  a  dying  process.  Man  is  not  dying 
for  only  a  few  minutes  or  hours,  but  usually  for  many 
years.  He  begins  to  die  shortly  after  he  has  attained 
to  the  fulness  of  bodily  strength  and  stature,  and  when 
the  freshness  and  bloom  of  early  manhood  have  begun 
to  depart.  But  up  to  this  time  there  is  physical  growth, 
progress,  a  continual  unfolding  of  bodily  powers. 

Now,  there  is  no  death  in  heaven  ;  consequently  no 
decay.  AH  is  life  there.  And  since  in  all  living  things 
on  earth  there  is  constant  progress  up  to  the  time  when 
death  commences,  therefore  (reasoning  analogically)  we 
must  conclude  that  progress  in  heaven  is  unending. 
Analogy  justifies  the  inference,  that,  so  long  as  there  is 
orderly  life  without  decay  in  any  created  subject,  so  long 
must  there  continue  to  be  a  progressive  improvement 
in  the  recipient  forms,  and  a  constant  increase  in  the 
fulness  and  perfection  of  that  life. 

Moreover,  the  angelic  heavens  are  continually  increas- 


E'JERXAL  rROCRF.SS  IN  irF.AVF.N. 


375 


ing  in  numbers.  Every  society  there  grows  by  the  con- 
stant addition  of  new  members ;  and  every  additional 
member  being  a  new  form  of  good  and  truth,  adds  some- 
thing to  the  perfection  of  the  society,  just  as  every  new 
instrument  added  to  a  band  of  music,  exalts  and  improves 
the  general  harmony.  In  this  way  also  every  society, 
and  consequently  the  whole  heaven  of  angels,  must  be 
ever  advancing  toward  a  more  and  more  perfect  state — 
ever  increasing  in  variety,  wisdom,  and  consequent  hap- 
piness. 

Can  there  be  any  doubt,  then,  about  the  truth  of  Swe- 
denborg's  disclosure  on  this  subject?  Nothing  less  than 
everlasting  progress  would  suit  the  nature  or  satisfy  the 
wants  of  the  human  soul.  Reason,  analogy  and  holy 
Scripture  alike  bear  testimony  to  its  truth.  No  one 
in  heaven  remains  stationary,  or  quite  satisfied  with 
his  present  attainments, — an  inspiring  and  ennobling 
thought !  There  all  are  forever  receiving  fresh  incre- 
ments of  wisdom  and  love,  forever  advancing  toward 
the  Divine  likeness,  forever  drawing  nearer  to  the  eter- 
nal Fountain  of  all  light,  life,  peace  and  joy.  No  one 
there  ever  thinks  that  he  has  attained  to  the  nc  plus  ultra 
of  knowledge,  or  that  the  intensity  and  purity  of  his 
love  can  never  be  increased.  On  the  contrary  they  all 
perceive  and  acknowledge  that  what  they  know  is  as 
nothing  in  comparison  with  the  fathomless  abyss  of 
knowledge  in  the  Divine  mind  ;  and  that  their  love,  in 
its  strength  and  sweetness,  bears  no  comparison  to  the 
Lord's  infinite  love.  While  they  are  in  this  state  of 
perception  and  humble  acknowledgment,  they  are  in  a 
progressive,  because  in  an  open  and  receptive  state. 


376 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


Their  joys,  too,  are  forever  multiplying,  for  these  in- 
crease with  the  increments  of  wisdom  and  of  love. 

What,  now,  is  the  practical  bearing  of  this  doctrine? 
What  is  its  obvious  and  legitimate  tendency?  Clearly 
this :  to  make  those  who  cordially  accept  it,  humble 
and  earnest  seekers  after  heavenly  goods  and  truths ; 
never  satisfied  with  present  attainments;  unwilling  to 
think  themselves  already  wise  or  good  enough,  but  al- 
ways reaching  after  a  wisdom  more  exalted ;  always 
going  on  unto  perfection,  yet  never  imagining  that  they 
have  attained  to  it.  It  naturally  suggests  such  reflec- 
tions or  inquiries  as  these :  Should  a  person  be  con- 
tent with  that  particular  phase  of  religious  truth  which 
was  adapted  to  the  world  centuries  ago  ?  Should  we 
refuse  to  believe  in,  or  neglect  to  seek  after,  higher  as- 
pects of  truth  than  such  as  were  suited  to  their  eyes? 
We,  who  know  so  very  little  comparatively — should  ive 
cease  to  be  receivers  or  learners,  when  the  angels  are 
inquiring  and  learning  forever  ?  Should  mortals  imag- 
ine that  they  have  fathomed  all  the  arcana  of  the  Divine 
Word  and  the  human  soul — that  they  have  reached  the 
end  of  God's  last  chapter  on  things  divine  and  spiritual 
— and  fancy  themselves  so  wise  that  they  can  afford  to 
sneer  at  further  alleged  disclosures,  when  those  shining 
ones  in  the  courts  above  so  humbly  confess  that  all  they 
know  is  as  nothing  in  comparison  with  what  they  do 
not  know?  Should  men  on  earth  indulge  the  conceit 
of  having  already  attained  perfection,  or  be  satisfied 
with  any  standard  already  reached,  when  the  angels  of 
the  highest  heaven  are  forever  advancing  in  wisdom  and 
in  all  angelic  graces  ? 


CONSOCIATION  01  A  KG  ELS  WITH  MEN.  377 


Oh,  what  a  rebuke  does  this  heavenly  doctrine  of  pro- 
gress, administer  to  that  contracted,  conceited  and  un- 
progressive  spirit  so  often  exhibited  even  among  pro- 
fessing Christians  ! — that  spirit  which  turns  proudly  and 
sometimes  scornfully  away  from  all  new  disclosures  on 
the  sublimest  themes  ;  and  which — asking  for  no  more 
and  no  higher  truth — plumes  itself  on  present  attain- 
ments, as  if  the  farthest  boundaries  of  spiritual  knowledge 
and  heavenly  wisdom  had  been  already  compassed! 

O,  God  of  boundless  truth  and  love,  be  pleased  to 
look  with  pit)'ing  eye  on  the  foolish  pride  and  self-con- 
ceit of  the  multitudes  who  treat  with  scorn  and  derision 
thy  sublime  revealings,  and  shed  down  on  all  thy  chil- 
dren here  below  more  of  that  humble,  truth-seeking, 
wisdom-loving,  progressive  spirit  of  thy  children  in  the 
realms  above ! 


E  have  shown  in  previous  chapters  th.at  heaven 


V  V  consists  of  innumerable  societies  of  wise  and 
happy  beings,  all  of  whom  were  once  dwellers  in  the 
natural  world  ;  and  spirits  of  a  very  different  character, 
also  of  human  origin,  constituting  a  realm  quite  the 
opposite  to  that  of  heaven,  have  often  been  referred  to. 
Thus  we  have,  in  these  two  realms,  the  clearly  announced 
Bible  doctrine  of  a  heaven  of  angels  and  a  hell  of 
devils.  These  in  the  aggregate  constitute  the  spiritual 
world — a  world  not  remote  from  the  natural,  but  inti- 


XXIX. 


CONSOCIATION  OF  ANGELS  WITH  MEN. 


378 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


mately  present  and  associated  with  it  as  the  soul  is  with 
the  body.  While  clothed  with  material  flesh,  we  are 
dwellers  at  one  and  the  same  time  in  both  worlds;  con- 
sciously and  sensibly  in  the  natural  world,  unconscious- 
ly, because  of  the  closed  condition  of  our  spiritual  senses, 
in  the  spiritual  world.  And  every  individual  is  inter- 
nally and  spiritually  associated  with  one  or  another  class 
of  spirits,  by  whom  he  is  daily  and  hourly  influenced 
almost  as  the  body  is  actuated  by  the  soul.  We  do  not 
see  the  spirits  that  are  near  and  operating  upon  us,  be- 
cause our  spiritual  eyes  are  closed;  but  we  may  know 
their  general  character  by  attentively  considering  the 
nature  of  our  predominant  thoughts  and  affections, — 
the  ends  at  which  we  aim,  the  prompting  and  governing 
motives  of  our  lives.  All  these  flow  into  our  minds  and 
hearts  through  the  medium  of  spirits  in  close  fellowship 
with  us ;  and  they  take  their  character,  therefore,  from 
the  character  of  the  spirits.  If  our  ruling  purpose  is 
supremely  selfish — one  that  shuts  out  from  the  heart  all 
reverent  regard  for  the  Word  of  the  Lord  and  the  good 
of  the  neighbor,  we  may  know  that  infernal  spirits  are 
our  invisible  companions — that  our  souls  are  in  fellow- 
ship with  devils,  inhaling  from  hour  to  hour  the  pesti- 
lential atmosphere  of  hell.  But  if  our  aims  are  good 
and  heavenly,  if  wc  regard  our  neighbor's  welfare  as  our 
own,  and  desire  above  all  else  to  know  and  do  the  will 
of  the  Lord,  then  angels  are  our  associates,  our  spirits 
receive  influx  from  them,  we  walk  and  work  in  their 
company,  and  breathe  the  balmy  air  of  heaven.  This 
accords  with  the  dictates  of  enlightened  reason,  and  is 
precisely  what  the  great  law  of  spiritual  affinity  would 
lead  us  to  expect.    Accordingly  Swedenborg  says : 


CONSOCIATION  OF  ANGELS  WITH  MEN.  379 

"All  spirits  arc  distinguished  in  the  other  life  by  this: 
they  who  desire  evil  against  others,  are  infernal  or  dia- 
bolical ;  but  they  who  desire  good  to  others,  are  good 
and  angelic  spirits.  Man  may  know  which  he  is  among, 
whether  the  infernal  spirits  or  the  angelic.  If  he  in- 
tends evil  to  his  neighbor,  thinking  nothing  but  evil 
concerning  him,  and  actually  doing  evil  when  in  his 
power,  and  finding  delight  in  it,  he  is  among  the  infer- 
nals,  and  becomes  himself  also  an  infernal  in  the  other 
life:  but  if  he  intends  good  to  his  neighbor,  and  thinks 
nothing  but  good  concerning  him,  and  actually  does 
good  when  in  his  power,  he  is  among  the  angelic,  and 
becomes  him.self  also  an  angel  in  the  other  life.  This 
is  the  criterion:  let  everj^  one  examine  himself  by  it. 
It  matters  not  that  a  person  does  not  do  evil  when  he 
either  cannot  or  dare  not,  nor  that  he  does  good  from 
some  selfish  regard:  such  abstinence  from  the  one  and 
performance  of  the  other,  have  only  their  origin  in  the 
man's  externals,  which  are  removed  in  the  other  life 
where  he  is  such  as  his  thoughts  and  intentions  make 
him." — A.  C.  n.  1680. 

"There  are  innumerable  societies  in  the  other  life, 
which  are  disposed  and  arranged  by  the  Lord  accord- 
ing to  all  the  genera  of  good  and  truth,  also  those  of  an 
opposite  character.  .  .  .  Every  man  is  associated  with 
these  as  to  his  interiors,  that  is,  as  to  his  thoughts  and 
affections,  although  he  is  ignorant  of  it.  Hence  comes 
all  which  a  man  thinks  and  wills.  .  .  .  Such  as  is  the 
good  in  a  man,  such  is  the  society  of  angels  with  which 
he  is  associated,  and  such  as  is  the  evil  in  him.  such  is 
the  society  of  evil  spirits  with  which  he  is  associated. 
Man  invites  to  himself  such  societies,  or  places  himself 
in  their  midst,  since  like  associates  with  like.  For  ex- 
ample :  he  who  is  covetous,  invites  to  himself  the  >;oci- 
eties  of  such  as  are  in  a  similar  lust.  He  who  loves 
liimself  in  preference  to  others,  and  despises  others,  in- 
vites to  himself  similar  spirits.    He  who  takes  delight 


HE  A  I  'EN  RE  VEAL  ED. 


in  revenge,  invites  such  as  are  in  a  similar  delight;  and 
so  in  otlier  cases.  Such  spirits  communicate  with  hell, 
and  man  is  in  the  midst  of  them,  and  is  ruled  altogether 
by  them,  so  that  he  is  no  longer  under  his  own  power 
a  d  guidance,  but  under  theirs,  although  he  supposes, 
from  the  delight  and  consequent  liberty  which  he  en- 
joys, that  he  rules  himself. 

"  He,  however,  who  is  not  covetous,  or  does  not  love 
himself  in  preference  to  others,  and  who  does  not  take 
delight  in  revenge,  is  in  the  society  of  similar  angels, 
and  by  them  is  led  of  the  Lord,  and  indeed  in  freedom, 
to  every  good  and  truth  to  which  he  suffers  himself  to 
be  led.  And  as  he  suffers  himself  to  be  led  to  an  inte- 
rior and  more  perfect  good,  so  he  is  led  to  interior  and 
more  angelic  societies.  The  changes  of  his  state  are 
nothing  else  but  changes  of  societies." — A.  C.  n.  4067. 

"The  angels  attendant  on  man  have  their  abode 
solely  in  his  ends  of  life.  So  far  as  he  has  respect  to 
an  end  of  the  same  kind  as  that  which  influences  the 
Lord's  kingdom — that  is,  to  the  good  of  the  neighbor, 
the  general  good,  the  good  of  the  church — so  far  the 
angels  are  delighted  with  him,  and  join  themselves  to 
him  as  a  brother;  but  so  for  as  he  is  influenced  by  self- 
ish ends,  the  angels  recede,  and  evil  spirits  from  hell 
draw  near;  for  in  hell  none  but  selfish  ends  have  rule." 
— Ibid.  n.  3796. 

All  this  is  quite  consistent  with  the  preceding  dis- 
closures, as  well  as  with  the  conclusions  of  a  sound 
mental  philosophy  and  the  rational  intuitions  of  the 
wisest  and  best  men.  And  we  observe  that  the  law 
governing  the  association  of  spirits  with  men,  is  the 
same  biological  law  according  to  which  spirits  them- 
selves are  arranged  into  different  societies — the  law  of 
spiritual  affinity.  And  the  Scripture,  too,  furnishes 
abundant  confirmation  of  the  truth  of  this  disclosure. 


CONSOCIATION  OF  ANGELS  WITH  MEN. 


381 


It  teaches  that  spirits  in  the  flesh  are  operated  upon  by- 
opposite  forces;  that  both  angels  and  devils  are  inti- 
mately present  with  men ;  the  former  to  enlighten, 
strengthen,  uplift  and  bless,  sympathizing  with  and 
helping  us  in  our  conflicts  with  selfishness  and  sin,  and 
rejoicing  at  the  sincere  repentance  of  every  sinner  (Luke 
XV.  7) ;  the  latter  to  tempt,  delude,  mislead  and  destroy 
— described  in  the  aggregate  as  a  single  individual,  "our 
adversary,  the  Devil,  walking  about  as  a  roaring  lion, 
seeking  whom  he  may  devour"  (i  Pet.  v.  8). 

The  evil  spirits  have  access  to  us  and  seek  to  retain 
dominion  over  us  by  virtue  of  our  natural  proprium  or 
hereditary  selfishness.  And  the  purpose  of  the  Lord's 
advent  in  the  flesh,  was  to  resist  and  overcome  this 
malign  influence,  and  place  Himself  in  such  a  relation 
to  mankind,  that  all  who  humbly  look  to  and  follow 
after  Him,  may  be  delivered  from  their  state  of  spiritual 
bondage.  Hence  the  rejoicing  in  heaven  over  the  Di- 
vine incarnation,  and  the  song  of  the  angelic  host  at  the 
hour  of  our  Savior's  birth,  "Glory  to  God  in  the  high- 
est, and  on  earth  peace,  good  will  toward  men  "  ! 

And  now  the  promise  of  his  Second  Coming  is  receiv- 
ing its  fulfillment — a  coming  of  Himself  and  his  angels 
into  closer  fellowship  with  all  open  and  receptive  souls 
— a  coming  with  the  loud-sounding  trumpet  of  spiritual 
truth,  to  gather  into  the  fold  of  tlie  good  Shepherd  all 
who  have  ears  to  hear — "his  elect  from  the  four  winds, 
from  one  end  of  the  heavens  even  to  the  other." 

And  the  great  practical  value  of  the  teaching  in  the 
above  extracts,  is  additional  evidence  of  its  truth.  For 
every  one  who  examines  himself  in  the  light  of  these 


382 


HEAVEN  REVEALED. 


disclosures,  may  know  the  character  of  his  invisible  as- 
sociates with  as  much  certainty  as  he  knows  by  sight 
the  members  of  his  own  family.  If  his  ends  are  su- 
premely selfish  and  worldly,  he  may  know  that  he  is 
internally  associated  with  infernal  spirits,  and  will,  when 
he  enters  the  other  world,  choose  their  society  in  pref- 
erence to  that  of  others.  But  if  he  is  seeking  to  know 
and  do  the  will  of  the  Lord,  acknowledging  his  evils 
and  striving  to  overcome  them,  he  may  be  sure  that 
angels  are  his  spiritual  associates,  working  mightily  in 
his  behalf;  and  that  in  the  Hereafter  he  will  desire  no 
other  companionship  than  theirs.  This  thought  is  in- 
spiring, and  can  hardly  fail  to  impress  every  sincere 
believer,  and  incite  him  to  daily  watchfulness,  prayer, 
self-denial  and  righteous  endeavor. 


Dk.  James  John  Garth  Wilkinson  (London)  s\vs: 

"  Swedenborg's  writings  are  a  library  in  themselves,  and  display 
the  most  careful  method,  lie  quarreled  with  no  church ;  lie 
set  himself  in  opposition  to  no  organized  body.  He  was  too  cath- 
olic to  found  a  sect.  He  spoke  the  truth  entrusted  to  him,  and 
left  it  to  permeate  the  lives  and  opinions  of  succeedinu  ages. 
His  charity  was  as  broad  as  the  ocean  which  rolls  lis  wuvcs  on 
every  shore.  The  most  magnificent  scholar  of  his  age.  lie  was 
at  the  same  time  the  humblest  Christian." — Introductiun  to  "Econ- 
omy of  the  Animal  Kingdom,"  p.  Ixxvi. 


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